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Georgina Johnson-Hopkins, left, and Barbara Ellzey at the Community Aviation Expo on June 28, 2024. (Angel Idowu / WTTW News)
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A Chicago educator is on a mission to take off with Chicago’s Black and Brown girls and explore the world of aviation.

FILE - Two United Airlines Boeing 737s are parked at the gate at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., July 7, 2022. (Wilfredo Lee / AP Photo, File)

Among the most recent issues, a chunk of outer aluminum skin was discovered to have fallen off the belly of a United Boeing 737 after it landed in Oregon. Earlier this month, a United jet suffered an engine fire during takeoff from Houston, and a tire fell off another United jet as it left San Francisco.

A passenger sent this picture from inside the aircraft after the landing on Jan. 5, 2024. (Kyle Rinker)

The FAA said the planes must be parked until emergency inspections are performed, which will “take around four to eight hours per aircraft.” The order impacts 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 jets, the agency approximates.

Planes at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. (WTTW News)

Nearly 4,800 pilots are being investigated by the Federal Aviation Authority for potentially concealing major health issues that could have them grounded. The FAA has already ordered 60 pilots who “posed a clear danger to aviation safety” to stop flying immediately.

ook at whether airplane seats are too cramped. (Juan Silva/Photodisc / Getty Images)

U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth criticized 2019 evacuation testing, which used just 60 passengers — far fewer than in most commercial jets — and did not include senior citizens, people with mobility disabilities or carry-on luggage.

A bulldozer slices through Bell Bowl Prairie, March 9, 2023. (Courtesy of Jessie Mermel)

Bell Bowl Prairie was bulldozed Thursday morning after an 18-month fight to save the ancient prairie remnant from destruction by Rockford Airport, which is carving out a roadway for an expansion of its cargo operations.

Construction on the Rockford Airport cargo expansion has come right to the edge of Bell Bowl Prairie. (Courtesy of Cassi Saari)

Barring any last-minute court decisions, the Greater Rockford Airport Authority will soon resume construction on its cargo expansion project, bulldozing a portion of ancient Bell Bowl Prairie in order to carve out a new roadway.

An aerial view of Waukegan National Airport. (Facebook / Waukegan Port District - Waukegan National Airport)

A proposal from the Waukegan Port District to buy 52 acres of forest preserve land to accommodate construction of a new airport runway is stirring up controversy in Lake County.

Construction on the Rockford Airport cargo expansion has come right to the edge of Bell Bowl Prairie. (Courtesy of Cassi Saari)

A rare patch of 8,000-year-old remnant Illinois prairie has been granted a new three-month lease on life, as the Greater Rockford Airport Authority has again delayed demolition of the natural area, pending additional environmental review.

A passenger walks past a Southwest Airlines plane at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, March 26, 2021. (AP Photo / Sue Ogrocki, File)

The new high-speed 5G service uses a segment of the radio spectrum that is close to that used by altimeters, which are devices that measure the height of aircraft above the ground.

The logo for Boeing appears on a screen above a trading post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, July 13, 2021. (AP Photo / Richard Drew, file)

A small group of Boeing engineers who perform key safety tasks are raising concerns about their ability to work free of pressure from supervisors, and their comments are prompting federal regulators to take a broader look into the company’s safety culture.

In this Feb. 18, 2021 file photo, a passenger wears a face mask to help prevent the spread of the new coronavirus as he waits for a Delta Airlines flight at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta. (AP Photo / Charlie Riedel, file)

Rowdy airline passengers have now racked up a record $1 million in potential fines this year, a toll of the tumult in the sky as travelers have returned after most were grounded by the pandemic in 2020.

Boeing 737 Max airplanes sit parked in a storage lot, Monday, April 26, 2021, near Boeing Field in Seattle. (AP Photo / Ted S. Warren)

The Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday that the settlement covers the installation of unapproved sensors and other parts on some Boeing 737 NG and 737 Max planes built between 2015 and 2019.

In this Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2020, file photo, a Boeing 737 Max jet, piloted by Federal Aviation Administration Chief Steve Dickson, prepares to land at Boeing Field following a test flight in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration announced the move early Wednesday, saying it was done after a “comprehensive and methodical” 20-month review process.

In this Monday, Dec. 16, 2019, file photo, Boeing 737 Max jets sit parked in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo / Elaine Thompson, File)

Boeing employees raised doubts among themselves about the safety of the 737 Max, hid problems from federal regulators and ridiculed those responsible for designing and overseeing the jetliner, according to a damning batch of newly released emails and texts.

In this Dec. 11, 2019, file photo, a Boeing 737 Max airplane being built for Norwegian Air International turns as it taxis for take off for a test flight at Renton Municipal Airport in Renton, Washington. (AP Photo / Ted S. Warren, File)

The list of items Boeing could be forced to fix before federal safety officials let the grounded 737 Max airliner fly again has grown to include a problem with electrical wiring used for the plane’s controls.