The first Alaska Airlines passenger flight on a Boeing 737-9 Max airplane takes off on a flight to San Diego from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Seattle on March 1, 2021.
Ted S. Warren/AP
The Federal Aviation Administration on Saturday ordered the grounding and immediate inspection of about 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft worldwide after a mid-flight emergency late Friday involving one of the planes operated by Alaska Airlines.
“The FAA is requiring immediate inspections of certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes before they can return to flight,” the agency’s administrator Mike Whitaker said in a statement.
The decision comes after an Alaska Airlines flight was forced to abruptly land in Portland, Ore., on Friday night. Along with the FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board is also investigating the incident.
On Friday night, Alaska Airlines grounded and ordered a fleet-wide inspection of its Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft. On Saturday, United Airlines also suspended service on some of its Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft per the FAA’s request. The airline told NPR the grounding will cause about 60 flight cancellations on Saturday.
Southwest Airlines and American Airlines told NPR they do not carry Boeing 737 Max 9s. While they do carry Boeing 737 Max 8s, both airlines said the model does not raise any concerns.
“The MAX -8 aircraft in our existing fleet and the -7 in our future fleet do not have the exit door plug involved in the Friday evening event. Our fleet and operation are unaffected,” a Southwest spokesperson said in a statement.
Meanwhile, India’s aviation regulator ordered the immediate inspections of all Boeing Max 737 aircraft owned by domestic operators, Reuters reported. None of India’s air operators are believed to carry the model that abruptly landed in Portland on Friday.
The incident comes less than four years after Boeing Max aircraft were allowed to fly passengers in the U.S. All Boeing Max planes were grounded worldwide in 2019 after two deadly crashes involving Max 8 jets.
Last week, Boeing urged the FAA to check its 737 Max jets for loose bolts after the discovery of at least two planes with improperly tightened nuts.
In a statement, Boeing spokesperson Jessica Kowal said the company supports the FAA’s call for inspections.
“Safety is our top priority and we deeply regret the impact this event has had on our customers and their passengers,” Kowal said. “In addition, a Boeing technical team is supporting the NTSB’s investigation into last night’s event. We will remain in close contact with our regulator and customers.”
What happened Friday night
Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 took off from Portland, Ore., shortly after 5 p.m. PST Friday, bound for Ontario, Calif. According to social media posts, it appeared that a window and piece of fuselage had broken off midair — leaving a gaping hole on the plane’s left side.
Oxygen masks were deployed as the aircraft quickly returned to Portland International Airport at 5:26 p.m. PST, according to FlightAware.com. The flight had 171 passengers and six crew members on board. No casualties or serious injuries were reported.
KPTV reported that the local fire department arrived on scene and treated minor injuries. At least one person needed further medical attention.
“We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what occurred tonight, and will share updates as more information is available,” Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said in a statement.
The airline grounded all of its Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft late Friday until it could inspect each plane. On Saturday, Alaska Airlines said it had completed inspections for more than a quarter of its planes and there were “no concerning findings.”
The company added that it will return planes to service after their inspections are completed “with our full confidence.” The airline expects inspections on all 65 of its Boeing 737 Max 9s to be completed in the next few days.
Boeing 737 Max’s troubled history
The aircraft’s safety problems were under global scrutiny after deadly crashes in Indonesia in 2018 and Ethiopia in 2019 — which killed a total of 346 people. After a worldwide halt in 2019, Boeing 737 Max completed its first U.S. commercial flight in December 2020.
Investigators determined that the company’s newly rolled-out flight control system was partly to blame. In both incidents, the system known as MCAS acted on a faulty sensor and forced both planes to erroneously nosedive even as the pilots attempted to regain control.
But it wasn’t just manufacturing flaws. A report by the Department of Transportation’s inspector general found that the company failed to tell regulators about critical changes it made to its flight control system. The report concluded that Boeing did this in order to expedite the plane’s certification process.
In 2021, Boeing agreed to pay more than $2.5 billion to settle a criminal charge related to the crashes. Under the deal, Boeing was ordered to pay a criminal penalty of $243.6 million while $500 million went toward a fund for the families whose loved ones were killed in the crashes. Much of the rest of the settlement was marked off for airlines that had purchased the troubled 737 Max planes.
