A Boeing 737 Max 9 plane made an emergency landing in Oregon, USA, after part of its hull, including a window, fell off mid-air.
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Passengers say the hole in the cabin was “the width of a refrigerator,” and a boy was sitting nearby whose shirt was sucked in.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it would inspect 171 aircraft.
The photo from the cabin shows a large spot of the night sky next to the people’s chairs.
The fuselage incident occurred at an altitude of about 5 kilometers. There were 177 passengers and crew members on board the damaged aircraft. Alaska Airlines said no one was injured.
The BBC writes that Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 took off from Portland, Oregon, bound for California, but returned to its original airport 35 minutes after departure.
The airline assured the public that the plane landed safely and no one on board was injured.
Alaska Airlines also said it was “temporarily” grounding all 65 of its Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft for inspection.
Boeing said it is aware of the Alaska Airlines plane crash and is “working to gather additional information.”
The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is also investigating the incident.
According to experts, this incident is unlikely to be related to previous problems with the Boeing 737 Max 9 regarding deficiencies in the MCAS software.
Passenger Diego Murillo told local TV station KPTV that a hole appeared in the cabin “the width of a refrigerator” and passengers heard a “very loud bang” as oxygen masks fell from above.
He also referred to other witnesses who were closer to the damaged part of the plane, according to whom there was a child in that row. “His shirt was torn off, it was sucked into the window, and his mother held him so that he himself would not follow her,” says the passenger.
In the images from the cabin of the plane, the starry sky is visible through the slot where the window was located. The bare frame of the chair closest to it was left without upholstery.
Judging by the photo, the damage zone is located in the rear third of the aircraft, behind the wing and engines.
In announcing the grounding of 65 of its Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft, Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said: Each aircraft will be returned to service after completing full maintenance and safety checks.
Minicucci praised the actions of the six crew members of the plane, which suffered an emergency descent from an altitude of about 4,900 meters.
My heart goes out to those who were on that flight. I’m so sorry you went through this,” Minicucci said.
In the released audio, the female pilot can be heard asking the air traffic controller for an emergency landing.
We’d like to go lower if possible, she says. – We have an emergency situation. We have depressurization, we need to go back. We have 177 passengers.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.