Southwest Airlines grounded 128 planes on Tuesday after discovering the aircraft had missed required inspections.
The Boeing 737-700 jets, representing about a fifth of the carrier's fleet, had overflown the check, which inspects backup rudder systems. The airline notified federal officials, who said the airline could continue flying the craft as long as the checks were completed in the next five days.
According to an FAA statement: "The airline voluntarily removed these aircraft from service while the FAA works with Boeing and Southwest to evaluate a proposal that would allow the airline to continue flying the planes until the inspections are completed over the next few days."
Southwest canceled 80 flights Tuesday, and expects cancel as many as 19 on Wednesday, airline spokesperson Brandy King told CBS News.
King said the airline expects to finish checking "a good portion" of the aircraft Wednesday morning.
Travelers scheduled to fly on Southwest should check with the airline for updated flight information.