9-Feb-2012 - Safety checks ordered for all Airbus A380 airplanes

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London (CNN) -- All Airbus A380 airplanes must be checked for cracks in the wings within three to four weeks, the European Aviation Safety Agency ordered Wednesday. The order does not mean the planes must be grounded, said Dominique Fouda, NHL jerseys a spokesman for the aviation agency. "They can fly, they just have to be checked within the time frame," he said. It expands an existing order that the 20 oldest A380s must be checked for cracks, Fouda said: "Now with the second directive we are including the whole fleet." Airbus declined to comment on the directive. There are 68 A380 planes in operation, the company says on its website, being flown by Air France, China Southern, Emirates, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Qantas and Singapore Airlines. A further 185 planes have been ordered, Airbus says. Wednesday's order is not because any new cracks have been found, Fouda said, but is a normal follow-up to the original directive issued three weeks ago. Fouda called the directives an interim measure, saying long-term nike nfl jerseys fix is "now being worked on with Airbus." He said it should be in place by the summer. CNN's Ric Ward contributed to this report

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