Alaska Airlines grounds Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes after emergency landing

Alaska Airlines grounded all its Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes after a flight with 177 people onboard made an emergency landing

By AFP

January 07, 2024

WASHINGTON: US-based Alaska Airlines grounded all its Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes on Friday after a flight with 177 people onboard made an emergency landing in the state of Oregon, with passengers saying a window panel blew out after takeoff.

Flight 1282 departed from Portland International Airport Friday evening before returning safely around 20 minutes later after cabin crew reported a “pressurization issue,” according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 Max flies above Paine Field near Boeings manufacturing facility in Everett, Washington, on March 23, 2020. — AFP — An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 Max flies above Paine Field near Boeing's manufacturing facility in Everett, Washington, on March 23, 2020. — AFP

Images posted on social media showed the window panel of a plane blown out, with emergency oxygen masks hanging from the ceiling.

“Following tonight’s event on Flight 1282, we have decided to take the precautionary step of temporarily grounding our fleet of 65 Boeing 737-9 aircraft,” Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said in a statement.

“Each aircraft will be returned to service only after completion of full maintenance and safety inspections,” he said, anticipating checks would be finished in a few days. Kyle Rinker, a passenger on the flight, told CNN that a window popped off soon after takeoff.