The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an order instructing U.S. airlines to temporarily cease operating specific Boeing 737 Max 9 planes for inspections following an incident where one of these planes experienced a midair structural issue, causing alarm among passengers before landing safely.
Alaska and United Airlines promptly grounded their Max 9 fleets and cancelled numerous flights to facilitate mandatory inspections mandated by federal authorities.
The particular Max 9 involved was Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, departing from Portland, Oregon, bound for Ontario, California. The plane returned to Portland shortly after takeoff, with no severe injuries reported among passengers. Witnesses described a frightening scene of a significant opening in the aircraft, exposing the night sky and city lights below due to a missing part.
Although the FAA hasn’t publicly disclosed the cause of the incident, it ordered airlines to inspect a component referred to as a “mid-cabin door plug.”
Some Boeing 737 Max 9s are configured with fewer seats than their maximum capacity, resulting in surplus doors being sealed with plugs. Flight 1282 had two such plugged doors, situated between the rear of the plane and the emergency exits on the wing.
Jennifer Homendy, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), revealed that one door plug tore off approximately 10 minutes after takeoff at an altitude of roughly 16,000 feet. Homendy noted the fortunate circumstance that the dislodging occurred while seats near the affected area were unoccupied.
NTSB investigators intend to analyze the second door plug to ascertain the cause of the incident. They will also examine the plane’s pressurization system and maintenance records.
The Boeing 737 Max 9 in question was recently delivered to Alaska Airlines and was certified in November. It had completed 145 flights since entering service in November, according to Flightradar24.
Spirit AeroSystems, responsible for installing door plugs on Max 9s, confirmed its involvement in installing the plug on the affected Alaska Air flight.
The FAA’s directive impacts around 171 planes, with each inspection estimated to take between four to eight hours per aircraft.
Dave Spero, president of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists Union, stressed the urgency of understanding how the door plug dislodged and emphasized the imperative nature of averting such risks in aviation.
While the Transportation Safety Board investigation continues, authorities have asked the public for assistance in locating the plane’s missing door, believed to have fallen into Portland’s Cedar Hills neighbourhood based on radar data.
Boeing’s Max aircraft have faced significant challenges, including the worldwide grounding following two crashes involving Max 8 jets in 2018 and 2019, resulting in the loss of hundreds of lives.
Following modifications to the flight control system implicated in the crashes, the FAA permitted the Max to resume operations in late 2020. Boeing reached a $2.5 billion settlement with the Justice Department in 2021, resolving allegations of conspiracy to defraud the agency.
Boeing advised airlines in December to inspect all 737 Max aeroplanes for potential loose bolts in the rudder-control system after an airline discovered a missing nut during routine maintenance. Alaska Airlines expected to conclude inspections for its fleet in early January.
Despite the challenges, Max 8 and Max 9 planes continue to be widely used, with 4.3 per cent and 0.7 per cent of scheduled global flights in January planned to be operated using these aircraft, respectively.
