Investigators search for Boeing explosion panels in suburban Portland By Reuters
© Reuters. People sit next to missing windows and part of a side wall from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, which suffered decompression shortly after takeoff from Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California, on January 5, 2024. this
Author: David Shepherdson, Valerie Incina, Tim Heffer
(Reuters) – U.S. authorities appealed for the public’s help as they began a daylight search near Portland, Oregon, on Sunday for a missing panel that blew up a new Boeing (NYSE:) 737 MAX 9 jet mid-flight on Friday. Many aircraft have been grounded worldwide for safety checks.
The so-called left side door plug of an Alaska Airlines jet taking off from Portland for Ontario, California was torn, forcing the pilots to turn around and land safely with all 171 passengers, six crew members and a few minors on board. Injuries have been reported.
The panels, which were installed on some planes in place of additional emergency exits, likely landed somewhere in Portland’s western suburbs but have not yet been found.
“I think this was a pretty horrific incident. We don’t often talk about psychological injuries, but I’m sure that’s what happened here,” NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy told reporters Saturday. . Tell me what caused the incident.
The accident has brought renewed scrutiny to Boeing as it awaits certification of the smaller MAX 7 and larger MAX 10 to compete with the popular Airbus model.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Saturday grounded 171 Boeing jets equipped with the same panels after an emergency landing of a plane that had been in service for just eight weeks. The grounding is expected to disrupt flight schedules for certain airlines for several days.
Most of the aircraft models used in the U.S. are operated by United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, while Turkish Airlines, Panama Copa Airlines and Aeromexico have also grounded their jets for inspection.
The airline must inspect the panels and make any necessary repairs. Before U.S. airlines can begin flying the planes, the FAA must further agree to detailed inspection standards proposed by Boeing. It was unclear whether that would happen on Sunday.
Alaska Airlines on Saturday suspended use of 18 MAX 9 aircraft as they resumed previous maintenance checks, following an FAA order.
On Sunday, 163 flights (21%) were cancelled, and travel disruption due to the grounding is expected to last until at least mid-week. United canceled 230 flights on Sunday, or 8% of scheduled departures.
‘I am very fortunate’
The accident is the second after a collision between an Airbus A350 and a Japan Coast Guard aircraft at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport that has focused attention on the survivability of the arriving cabin within days. No airline passengers were killed in either accident, but a Coast Guard turboprop crew member was killed.
In the Alaska Aviation Emergency, NTSB Chairman Homendy said the two seats next to the section of fuselage that exploded were empty. An independent U.S. agency has launched an investigation.
“We’re very fortunate that this didn’t end in something more tragic,” Homendy said. Parts of the fuselage side seats were missing, including the headrests.
Portland police and fire departments did not immediately respond to requests for comment Sunday.
Additional exit doors are typically installed by low-cost airlines that use more seats that require additional evacuation routes. However, on jets with fewer seats, these doors are blocked. To passengers, the area looks like a typical window seat.
The Boeing 737’s fuselage was built by Kansas-based Spirit Aerosystems (NYSE:), which spun off from Boeing in 2005. Spirit manufactured and installed the plug that suffered the explosion, a source told Reuters on Saturday.
Sources familiar with the installation process said Boeing is playing a potentially important role because it typically supplies cabin equipment and removes the half-mounted left door panel to speed up production before completing the final installation.
Investigators are expected to look into whether installation defects occurred at Spirit or Boeing plants, the people said.
Spirit referred questions to Boeing, which did not respond to a request for comment on whether it participated in the final installation.
Boeing and Spirit have experienced various production issues as the aerospace industry struggles to return to normal following the COVID-19 pandemic. On December 28, Boeing urged airlines to inspect all 737 MAX jets for loose rudder control system bolts.
MAX planes have been grounded worldwide for 20 months since crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia nearly five years ago that killed nearly 350 people due to poorly designed cockpit software.
It is also ramping up production to compete with Airbus, which will confirm its status as the world’s largest aircraft manufacturer on January 11, having delivered 735 aircraft last year, sources said.
