Qantas has confirmed it has found cracks in three Boeing 737s and has removed the planes from service for repair.
Qantas said while repairs were “complex”, the affected aircraft would be flying again by the end of the year.
In a statement, Qantas said, "Of the 33 of Qantas' 737 aircraft that required inspection, three were found to have a hairline crack in the pickle fork structure."
The "pickle fork" – the term is actually derived from a pickle fork - is used to strengthen the connection between the wing and the body of the plane.
The airline had begun inspections on about half of its Boeing 737 planes after a crack was found on one of them during a scheduled maintenance check.
Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesperson Peter Gibson described the cracking as "a serious problem" but said there was "no evidence" to suggest Qantas's whole fleet should be grounded.
"Boeing came up with a procedure to inspect these aircraft in a specific area and that's being done right around the world, including here in Australia," he told the ABC.
Qantas said it would minimise any customer impact from having the three aircraft temporarily out of service.