FAA orders the grounding of approximately 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft following an incident where a cabin panel was blown out mid-flight.

Following an incident where an Alaska Airlines plane experienced a cabin panel loss during a flight with approximately 180 passengers on board, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has instructed airlines to temporarily ground certain Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft for safety inspections. The New York Times reported that the plane, which had been in operation since November, managed to land safely at Portland International Airport in Oregon, where it had departed from. Fortunately, there were no significant injuries, although the Alaska division of the Association of Flight Attendants stated that workers described a sudden and forceful decompression in the cabin, resulting in minor injuries to one flight attendant.

“The FAA is requiring immediate inspections of certain Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft before they can return to flight,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said. “Safety continues to guide our decision-making as we assist the NTSB in its investigation of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282.”

Immediately following the incident, Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci released a statement saying the company would ground its fleet of 65 Boeing 737-9 aircraft for a few days while it conducted safety inspections. “Each aircraft is returned to service only after full maintenance and safety checks,” Minicucci. The FAA’s order extends the ground ban to “approximately 171 aircraft worldwide” that are either operated by US airlines or are in US territory.

Minicucci also said the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating what happened with Flight 1282 and “we fully support their investigation.” The plane was on its way to Ontario, California. Reuters reported, citing FlightRadar24, that the explosion occurred at an altitude of about 16,000 feet. In social media posts shared with Reuters and the NYT, passengers can be seen sitting right next to the opening and a completely exposed sky.

Boeing’s 737 Max was previously grounded for nearly two years following fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019. All 189 people on board died in a 2018 crash in Indonesia and 157 died in a 2019 crash in Ethiopia. In 2021, Boeing agreed to pay $2.5 billion in a settlement with the Justice Department to avoid criminal charges over the accidents.