Concern about the safety of the Boeing 737 Max 9 continues to grow. United Airlines reported that they have found loose screws in the panels of aircraft of this model in the same panels that came loose last Friday on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, which had to make an emergency landing in Portland (Oregon) at 20 minutes after taking off from that airport.
United indicated that in its inspections it had detected problems with the installation of the sealed door that was blown up on the other American company’s flight. The Alaska Airlines incident caused the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to order some 200 aircraft of this model to be grounded, pending determination of what caused the Oregon incident.
United’s disclosure came after reports emerged that Alaska Airlines was warned on three previous occasions about problems with cabin pressure on these planes. The notices were significant enough for the airline to decide that these 737 Max 9s could not be used on flights to Hawaii.
In aircraft with more seats, these panels to seal the cabin are usually an emergency door. United detected this deficiency when removing seats for inspection.
Hundreds of flights and passengers have been affected by the order that these Boeings be grounded until regulators consider them reliable. Alaska Airlines has 65, around 20% of its fleet, and United has 79, more than any other company and around 8% of all its aircraft.
The panel jumped on last Friday’s flight ten minutes after takeoff. Fortunately, according to Jennifer Homendy, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) responsible for the matter, the incident did not end in tragedy because the nearby seats were empty, the passengers were still wearing their seatbelts and the plane had not yet had reached cruising altitude.
But the 171 passengers and six crew members did feel the impact of a strong wind, a great scare, the dancing of the hanging yellow masks and a darkness illuminated by the points of light on the ground. The emergency landing was done safely without anyone being injured.
In a few months between 2018 and 2019, two state-of-the-art Boeing 737 Max 8m aircraft suffered tragic accidents in which 346 people lost their lives.
The hole in the aircraft of flight 1282 did swallow up passengers’ toys or mobile phones and in this circumstance seems to be the key to an Oregon professor finding the detached part in mid-flight.
The NTSB asked for citizen collaboration to locate that piece as it is a key element in determining what happened. Bob Sauer, 64 years old and with 40 years of experience as a high school physics teacher, checked the garden of his house in the Portand metropolitan area after receiving a call from a neighbor. The woman told him that she had heard that a phone that had fallen from the plane had been found in the neighborhood.
Sauer, equipped with a flashlight, went to his Cedar Hills property Sunday night. He soon observed that a white metallic object was shining there. His heart raced because he couldn’t imagine something like that, despite his good knowledge of the laws of physics.
But it was true, there was the security door that had detached from the Alaska Airlines plane. Apparently, the trees acted as a parapet, like an airbag, before he fell to the ground. She took some photos and called the NTSB.
On Monday he received a visit from officials, who questioned him for half an hour and took that critical piece for the investigation to the Washington laboratories. The board honored him with the gift of a medallion, decorated with an eagle, to thank him for his efforts.
