Consequently , after repeated cycles of pressurization and depressurization during flight , cracks began to form around the exposed scratches . Finally , on 25 May 2002 , coincidentally 22 years to the day after the faulty repair was made upon the damaged tail , the hull broke open in mid-air . An explosive decompression occurred once the crack opened up , causing the complete disintegration of the aircraft . This was not the first time that a plane had crashed because of a faulty repair following a tailstrike . On 12 August 1985 , 17 years before Flight 611 's crash and 7 years after the accident aircraft 's repair , Japan Airlines Flight 123 had crashed when the vertical stabilizer was torn off and the hydraulic systems severed by explosive decompression , with only four survivors . That crash had been attributed to a faulty repair to the rear pressure bulkhead , which had been damaged in 1978 in a tailstrike incident . In both crashes , a doubler plate was not installed according to Boeing standards
Japan Airlines Flight 123
Japan Airlines Flight 123
China Airlines Flight 611