US Grounds Some Boeing 737 Max 9 Planes After Alaska Airlines Mid-Air Blowout

The United States has issued an order to ground some of the Boeing 737 Max 9 planes in the wake of the Alaska Airlines mid-air emergency.

Alaska Airlines jetliner suffered fuselage damage shortly after takeoff.

Source : Getty

Authorities in the United States ordered the immediate grounding of certain Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners for thorough inspections after Friday's blowout incident on an Alaska Airlines plane resulted in a significant breach in the fuselage. The inspections take around eight hours per aircraft and impact around 171 airplanes globally, according to the Associated Press.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) informed the inspections would affect 171 planes. The FAA, as reported by BBC, said it would "order the temporary grounding of certain Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft operated by US airlines or in US territory".

Alaska Airlines provided an update, stating that out of their 65 Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft, crews had already inspected the paneled-over exits during recent maintenance work on 18 planes. Those cleared for service resumed operations on Saturday. The airline expected to complete inspections on the remaining planes over the next few days.

The alarming incident occurred when an Alaska Airlines jetliner suffered fuselage damage shortly after takeoff at an altitude of 4.8 kilometers above Oregon. The pilots promptly executed an emergency landing, with all 171 passengers and six crew members safely utilising oxygen masks. Despite the harrowing experience, no serious injuries were reported, and the plane successfully returned to Portland International Airport just 20 minutes after departure.

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci mentioned that the inspection of the company's 737-9 aircraft might take several days to finish. These specific aircraft make up around one-fifth, of the company's total fleet of 314 planes.

“We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what occurred ... and will share updates as more information is available,” Minicucci said, as per AP News. “My heart goes out to those who were on this flight – I am so sorry for what you experienced.”

Alaska and United Airlines operate the largest fleets of MAX 9 planes, while Icelandair and Turkish Airlines have a smaller number of these aircrafts.

Alaska Airlines cancelled more than 100 flights, or 15 per cent of its Saturday schedule by midday. United Airlines said the plane inspections would result in about 60 cancellations, reported AP News.

Boeing has so far delivered some 218 737 MAX 9 planes worldwide, the company told AFP.

Flight 1282 departed from Portland at 5:07 PM on Friday, heading for a two-hour journey to Ontario, California. Roughly six minutes into the flight, a section of the fuselage ruptured. In response, one of the pilots declared an emergency and requested clearance to descend to 10,000 feet (3 kilometers), an altitude with sufficient oxygen for safe breathing.

People applauded after the flight landed 13 minutes after the blowout, following which firefighters came down the aisle to treat the injured.