Portland, Oregon (KPTV): Following a Boeing 737-9 aircraft that blew out a window and a portion of its fuselage just after takeoff on Friday, three miles above Oregon, Alaska Airlines has grounded the entire fleet of these aircraft.
With 174 passengers and six crew members wearing oxygen masks, the quick depressurization dragged a child’s clothes through its the hole and prompted the pilots to make an emergency landing.
After taking off and landing safely at Portland International Airport, the depressurized plane took roughly twenty minutes to return, with no significant injuries.
The airline reported that it had grounded its sixty-five Boeing 737-9 aircraft so that they could be inspected; on Saturday, the National Transportation Safety Board said that it would conduct an investigation as well.
The 737-9 fleet, which makes up a fifth of the airline’s 314 aircraft, is undergoing an inspection that, according to CEO Ben Minicucci, might take several days to finish.
“We are working with Boeing and authorities to determine what transpired… and will share updates as more information is available,” Minicucci said. “I am so sorry for what you went through.
The airport’s operator, Port of Portland, reported that one passenger was transferred for additional treatment but was not critically harmed and that the fire department attended to minor injuries on the spot.
The plane landed safely about 13 minutes after the window came out, and videos that passengers shared online showed a huge hole where the window had been and people wearing masks.
After going into commercial service on November 11, the aircraft in question had only been in 145 flights, according to FlightRadar24, another tracking service; the flight from Portland was the third that day. The aircraft in question had just come off the assembly line and received its certification two months prior, according to online FAA records.
In May 2017, Boeing introduced the Max, the most recent iteration of its iconic 737, a twin-engine, single-aisle aircraft that is widely utilized for domestic travel within the United States.
Only after Boeing made modifications to an automated flight control system linked to the crashes, two Max 8 aircraft that crashed in 2018 and 2019—which claimed 346 lives—were put back into service, nearly two years after all Max 8 and Max 9 aircraft were grounded globally.
Due to a concern that the inlets surrounding the engines may overheat and break away, potentially hitting the aircraft, the FAA advised pilots last year to minimize the use of the anti-ice system on the Max in dry weather.
The business informed airlines in December to check the aircraft for a potential loose bolt in the rudder-control system, and as a result, Max deliveries have occasionally been delayed to address production defects.