US officials ordered the grounding of Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft after the plane’s window exploded

Federal officials ordered Saturday Instant grounding Some Boeing 737 Max 9 planes are up for inspection after an Alaska Airlines plane was hit by an explosion that left a large hole in the side of the fuselage.

The required inspections take about four to eight hours per aircraft and affect about 171 aircraft worldwide.

Alaska Airlines said in a statement that of the 65 737 MAX 9 aircraft in its fleet, crews inspected the paneled exits as part of recent maintenance work on 18 of the planes, and they were cleared to return to service on Saturday. The company said that inspections of the remaining aircraft are expected to be completed in the coming days.

An Alaska Airlines plane exploded part of the fuselage shortly after takeoff 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) over Oregon late Friday, forcing the pilots to make an emergency landing as its 171 passengers and crew were… Six people wearing oxygen masks.

No one was seriously hurt when the low-pressure plane returned safely to Portland International Airport about 20 minutes after departure.

Authorities are still searching for the door from the boarded-up exit and have a good idea where it landed, near Oregon Route 217 and Barnes Road in the Cedar Hills area west of Portland, Jennifer Homendy, head of the National Transportation Safety Board, said at a news conference. Conference late Saturday.

“If you find this, please, please contact your local law enforcement,” she said.

Homendy said it was fortunate that the plane had not yet reached cruising altitude, where passengers and flight attendants would have been wandering around the cabin.

“No one was sitting in 26A and B where the door plug is located, and the plane was at about 16,000 feet and only 10 minutes from the airport when the door exploded,” she said.

The headrests on seats 26A, 25A and 26A were missing and part of the seat back was missing. Homendy said there were also pieces of clothing scattered in the area.

Passenger Evan Smith said that a boy and his mother were sitting in the row in which the plate exploded, and the child’s shirt was sucked from him and he left the plane.

“I heard a big loud bang in the left rear end. There was a buzzing sound and all the oxygen masks were deployed immediately and everyone was putting them on,” Smith said. Kato-TV.

Homendy was unable to confirm reports that anyone’s shirt had been torn due to the pressure drop or provide details about what happened to those sitting near the exploding fuselage.

Homendy and investigators from the NTSB arrived in Portland on Saturday to begin an investigation that is likely to last months.

Ben Minicucci, CEO of Alaska Airlines, said the inspection of the company’s 737-9 plane could take days to complete. These aircraft constitute five of the company’s 314 aircraft.

“We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what happened… and will share updates as more information becomes available,” Minicucci said. “My heart goes out to those on this flight – I am so sorry for what they have been through.”

Alaska had canceled more than 100 flights, or 15% of its Saturday schedule, by midday, according to FlightAware. United said the aircraft inspections would result in the cancellation of about 60 planes.

The Port of Portland, which operates the airport, said KBTV The fire department treated minor injuries at the scene. One person was transported for further treatment but was not seriously injured.

Flight 1282 took off from Portland at 5:07 p.m. Friday for a two-hour flight to Ontario, California. About six minutes later, part of the fuselage exploded while the plane was at an altitude of about 16,000 feet (4.8 kilometers). One of the pilots A state of emergency was declared He requested a permit to descend to 10,000 feet (3 kilometers), an altitude at which the air contains enough oxygen to breathe safely.

“We need to get back to Portland,” the pilot told controllers in a calm voice, which she maintained throughout the landing.

Videos posted online by passengers showed a large gap where the exit was covered with boards and passengers wearing masks. They applauded when the plane landed safely about 13 minutes after the explosion. Firefighters then descended the aisle and asked passengers to remain in their seats while the injured were treated.

The aircraft in question rolled off the assembly line and received its certification two months ago FAA records online. Another tracking service, FlightRadar24, said the plane had been on 145 flights since entering commercial service on November 11. The flight from Portland was the plane’s third flight of the day.

Aviation experts were amazed that a piece would fly from a new plane. Anthony Brickhouse, a professor of aviation safety at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, said he had seen fuselage panels coming off planes before, but he couldn’t recall a panel where passengers were “looking at the city lights.”

He said the accident was a reminder to passengers to remain fastened to their seat belts.

“If there had been a passenger in that window seat who had happened to have their seatbelt undone, we would be looking at a completely different news story.”

The MAX is the latest version of Boeing’s venerable 737, a twin-engine, single-aisle plane frequently used on U.S. domestic flights. The aircraft entered service in May 2017.

The president of the union that represents flight attendants at 19 airlines, including Alaska Airlines, praised the crew for keeping passengers safe.

“Flight attendants are trained for emergency situations and on every flight we work for flight safety first and foremost,” Sarah Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants, said in a statement Saturday.

Two Max 8 planes crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people and leaving nearly two people dead. Earthing around the world For all Max 8 and Max 9 aircraft. They returned to service only after Boeing made changes to the automated flight control system involved in the accident.

Last year the Federal Aviation Administration required pilots to do so Limit usage An anti-icing system was used on the Max in dry conditions due to concern that the inlets around the engines would overheat and separate, potentially causing the plane to crash.

Peak deliveries were occasionally interrupted to fix manufacturing defects. The company asked airlines in December to inspect the planes for a possibility Loose bolt In the rudder control system.

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This story has been updated to clarify that some, but not all, of the Max 9 planes are subject to inspection and to correct the passenger count to 171.

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Koenig reported from Dallas. Bohrer reported from Juneau, Alaska. Associated Press reporters Terry Spencer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu, Hawaii, contributed.