Boeing 737 MAX 9 Safety Under Scrutiny: Loose Bolts Found on United and Alaska Airlines Planes
On Monday (8 Jan), United Airlines, a major American airline, discovered loose bolts on multiple Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft.
This is the same Boeing model that was grounded following an incident involving an Alaska Airlines-operated plane over the weekend when a panel blew off during the flight.
Similarly, Alaska Airlines reported finding loose parts on their Max 9 aircraft.
This revelation has reignited concerns among industry experts regarding the manufacturing standards of Boeing’s best-selling jet family, especially in light of the previous issues with the Boeing 737 Max 8 a few years back.
New Boeing 737 Max 9 for Alaska Airlines Flight
On the evening of last Friday (5 Jan), an Alaska Airlines flight departed from Oregon.
Roughly 4.8 km into the flight, about seven minutes after takeoff, a section of the jetliner’s fuselage was torn off mid-air.
FlightRadar24 reported that the aircraft was at an altitude of 16,000 feet when the incident occurred.
The blown-off part was a door located towards the rear of the plane.
Passenger photos indicated that a section of the fuselage, usually reserved for an optional rear mid-cabin exit door, had disappeared, leaving a neat gap behind.
This extra door is typically fitted by low-cost airlines to accommodate additional seats, necessitating more evacuation routes.
National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy confirmed that fortunately, the two seats adjacent to the torn section were unoccupied, as reported by CTV News.
Social media posts depicted deployed oxygen masks and a missing portion of the aircraft’s sidewall.
The pilot managed an emergency landing, and thankfully, none of the 171 passengers or six crew members sustained serious injuries.
According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) data, the plane was delivered to Alaska Airlines in late October and certified in early November.
In response to the incident, the FAA has mandated immediate inspections of certain Boeing 737 Max 9 planes and grounded these aircraft pending clearance for return to flight, stated FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker.
Discrepant Bolts on at Least Five Panels
Consequently, inspections were carried out on Boeing 737 Max 9 planes.
United Airlines reported finding loose bolts and other parts on the 737 Max 9 plug doors, with these discrepancies observed on at least 5 aircrafts.
According to The Air Current, United Airlines indicated that the issues seem related to installation problems in the door plug, specifically concerning the fuselage section.
This development has raised questions about the FAA’s inspection processes and whether they have been adequately executed for the jets to be cleared for flying again.
Following United’s announcement, Boeing committed to addressing any findings raised by the airlines, as reported by The Seattle Times.
Boeing issued an early Monday morning bulletin to all airlines operating the MAX 9, detailing the required inspections.
The FAA has not yet issued a response. However, the repercussions of such oversights are already evident.
Boeing shares plummeted by 8% on Monday.
Meanwhile, Alaska Airlines’ shares remained relatively stable after an initial dip earlier in the session.
Previous Boeing 737 Issues
Boeing’s 737 Max 8 jets have previously been the source of significant concern, following two catastrophic crashes in 2018 and 2019 that collectively claimed 346 lives.
These incidents led to the global grounding of the Boeing 737 Max jets, which occurred in quick succession within a span of less than five months.
The 737 Max was eventually cleared to resume passenger flights by US regulators in 2020 after a 20-month grounding worldwide.
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