More than 100 Boeing 737s to be checked for fuselage cracks. Image: Associated Press

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has called for more than 100 Boeing 737s to be inspected for fuselage cracks.

Boeing 737 aircraft are considered high-cycle planes, meaning they fly a lot of takeoffs and landings; therefore the fuselage is constantly pressurised and depressurised, CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg reported.

“That can lead, if you're not careful, to fatigue cracks and a rupture in the skin,” Mr Greenberg said.

“So what the new FAA directive is calling for are more inspections - not just visual inspections, but electromagnetic inspections - because if you don't get these fatigue cracks early enough, they can lead to cracking... and next thing you know, a fracture of the fuselage.”

This is not the first directive of this kind the FAA has issued.