Alaska Airlines begins preliminary inspections of up to 20 Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft By Reuters

© Reuters. File photo: The fuselage plug of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, a Boeing 737-9 Max that was forced to make an emergency landing with a gap in the fuselage, is visible during an investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in Portland.

(Reuters) – Alaska Airlines said on Saturday it will begin preliminary inspections of some Boeing (NYSE:) 737-9 MAX aircraft this weekend and that up to 20 aircraft could undergo inspection.

The airline also said it would launch and strengthen its own quality control layer for aircraft production and that it had begun a review of Boeing’s production quality and control systems, including oversight of Boeing’s production suppliers.

Alaska Airlines said it had a candid conversation with Boeing’s CEO and executives earlier this week to discuss quality improvement plans to ensure the highest quality aircraft are delivered from the Alaska production line.

The airline said the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will require more data from Boeing before approving the maintenance guidelines used to conduct the airline manufacturer’s proposed inspections and final inspections to safely return the 737-9 MAX to service. Yes.

The FAA announced Friday that it had indefinitely extended the grounding of Boeing’s 737 MAX 9 aircraft to allow for new safety inspections, and that it would increase oversight of Boeing itself after a cabin panel damaged the new jet mid-flight.

Under tighter oversight, regulators will audit the Boeing 737 MAX 9 production line and suppliers and consider having an independent agency take over from Boeing certain aspects of certifying the new plane’s safety that the FAA previously assigned to the planemaker. .