Regulators in the United States have launched a formal investigation into the Boeing 737 Max 9 after a window and a piece of the fuselage exploded in midair last week.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is examining whether Boeing neglected to check whether a panel that flew from an Alaska Airlines passenger jet was safe and manufactured to meet regulatory standards.
Its investigations focus on plugs used to cover emergency exits not used by the airline.
Federal Aviation Administration 171 Boeing aircraft groundedmost of which are operated by US airlines Alaska Airlines and United Airlines until aircraft inspections are completed.
Please use Chrome browser for an easily accessible video player
Latest Boeing 737 claims
It remains unclear when the planes will get the green light to fly again, in what has been a shaky start to the year for Boeing, the world's largest airline.
Alaska and United both said Monday they found loose bolts on several grounded planes during initial inspections.
They have canceled hundreds of flights so far, and Alaska said that equates to 110 to 150 flights per day.
The door stopper — which the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says has been recalled — It was torn after take-off on an Alaska Airlines plane from portland, OregonCausing the pressure to drop and forcing the pilots to turn back.
The plane landed safely, flying at an altitude of 16,000 feet (4,900 meters), with 171 passengers and six crew members on board.
The fuselage connection area of the affected Alaska Airlines flight
Please use Chrome browser for an easily accessible video player
The flight suffers a mid-air explosion
While only minor injuries were reported as a result of the explosion, the situation could have been “extremely dangerous,” according to David Learmont, consulting editor at Flightglobal.
The FAA said the accident “should never have happened and can never happen again.”
Asked Boeing To respond quickly and report the “root cause” of the door plug problem and the steps the company will take to prevent its reoccurrence.
Boeing said in a statement that it “will cooperate fully and transparently with the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board in their investigations.”
Read more:
The problems that Boeing faced with its 737 MAX aircraft
Boeing accused of relying on “bad things”
Ryanair regrets 'minor issues' with new Boeing aircraft
Spirit AeroSystems, a subcontractor that installed the door seal that exploded from an Alaska Airlines plane, said in a statement that “quality and product safety” are a priority.
This is the latest problem for Boeing after its 737 MAX planes were grounded for a year and a half after two accidents in 2018 and 2019 that killed all those on board.
Meanwhile, the competing manufacturer Airbus The company is closely monitoring the investigation, as the company announced record annual aircraft orders for 2023.
A United Airlines flight landed prematurely in Florida after pilots were alerted about a potential problem with the door of an Airbus A319. The airline confirmed that the plane took off “after the problem was addressed.”
