Alaska Airlines window blowout incident: United Airlines finds loose bolts on several 737 MAX planes
United Airlines discovered loose bolts and installation issues on some Boeing 737 Max 9 jets after inspecting them following a mid-flight fuselage blowout on an Alaska Airlines jet.
“Since we began preliminary inspections on Saturday, we have found instances that appear to relate to installation issues in the door plug – for example, bolts that needed additional tightening,” Chicago-based United said as quoted by Associated Press.
A Boeing Co. 737 Max jet operated by Alaska Airlines made an emergency landing at Portland International Airport on Friday after a window and a portion of the plane’s fuselage blew out shortly after take-off. Following the incident, Alaska Airlines grounded all of its Boeing 737-9 aircraft.
Earlier on Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved guidelines for inspecting the door plugs on other Max 9 jets and repairing them, if necessary. That move could speed the return to service of the 171 planes that the FAA grounded.
Currently, Alaska has 64 Max 9s while United Airlines owns 79 of them and no other US airlines operate that model.
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Published: 09 Jan 2024, 06:09 AM IST
