The Boeing 737 Max has another problem, and this time it’s a very serious one: an Alaska Airlines flight (flight AS1282 from Oregon to Ontario) ejected a factory-deactivated emergency exit during the flight.. As a result, part of the fuselage simply fell out at an altitude of about 5 km: depressurization led to oxygen masks falling out.
“ Photos emerged showing a large hole in the side of the plane and exposed insulation. Others showed photos of masks hanging from the ceiling,” Oregon Live reported.. Passengers also said that the air flow carried their smartphones into the hole, with which they tried to film what was happening.
The brand new Boeing 737 MAX 9 (it rolled off the production line just two months ago) returned to Portland Airport, where it successfully made an emergency landing.
It is unclear why the emergency exit ejected during the flight; now experts will look into it. As Airline Reporter reported, both active and deactivated exits cannot be opened to the outside during flight.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has already ordered airlines to temporarily ground some Boeing 737 Max 9s for safety checks.
” The FAA requires immediate inspections of some Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft before they can return to flight.”. Our decisions will determine air safety as we assist the NTSB in its investigation of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282,” said FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker.
Alaska Airlines has already grounded 65 Boeing 737-9s from its fleet for several days for inspections.. In total, the FAA order applies to 171 aircraft.
Let us recall that earlier Boeing 737 Max flights were suspended for two years after two crashes in 2018 and 2019, which killed 346 people.