PORTLAND (Oregon, US), Jan 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A passenger plane lost a section of its fuselage in mid-air forcing it to make an emergency landing in the US state of Oregon.
The Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 turned back minutes into its flight to California after an outer section, including a window, fell off on Friday.
There were 177 passengers and crew on board and it landed safely in Portland.
The airline said it would temporarily ground all 65 of its 737 Max 9 aircraft to conduct inspections.
Boeing said it was aware of the incident and was “working to gather more information”.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority said it was “monitoring the situation very closely”.
Announcing the grounding of the 65 planes, Alaska Airlines’ CEO Ben Minicucci said: “Each aircraft will be returned to service only after completion of full maintenance and safety inspections.”
The flight to Ontario, California, had reached 16,000ft (4,876m) when it began its emergency descent, according to flight tracking data.
“My heart goes out to those who were on this flight – I am so sorry for what you experienced,” Minicucci said. “I am so grateful for the response of our pilots and flight attendants.”
In an audio clip, the pilot can be heard talking to air traffic control requesting a diversion.
“We are an emergency,” she said. “We are depressurised, we do need to return back.”
According to photographs, the affected area was in the back third of the plane, behind the wing and engines.
The section of fuselage involved appears to be an area that can be used as an additional emergency exit door by some operators, but not by Alaska.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 “returned safely… after the crew reported a pressurisation issue”.
Boeing said a “technical team stands ready to support the investigation”.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating the incident.
The Boeing 737 Max has been described as “the most scrutinised transport aircraft in history” after a series of safety issues.
The Max was grounded in March 2019 for a year-and-a-half after two of the type crashed in similar circumstances to each other killing those on board.
About 1,300 737 Max aircraft have been delivered to customers, Boeing data shows.
Last month, the FAA urged airlines to inspect Max models for a possible loose bolt in rudder control systems. — NNN-AGENCIES
