Alaska Airlines' Boeing 737 Max 9 returns to the skies after three-week grounding
The first Boeing 737 Max 9 flight since the mid-air blowout incident, Alaska Flight 1146, takes off from Seattle to San Diego.
After a three-week hiatus due to a mid-air door plug blowout incident, Alaska Airlines restarted its Boeing 737 Max 9 flights on Friday.
The airline conducted rigorous inspections on its fleet of 65 Max 9 planes, following the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) instructions.
The first Max 9 flight since the grounding, Alaska Flight 1146, left Seattle-Tacoma International Airport for San Diego on Friday afternoon. Two more flights were scheduled to depart later that day from Las Vegas to Portland, Oregon, and from Seattle to Ontario, Canada.
The airline said in a statement on Wednesday that it planned to resume some of its Max 9 operations on Friday, after ensuring the safety and airworthiness of each plane.
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“Each of our 737-9 MAX will return to service only after the rigorous inspections are completed and each plane is deemed airworthy according to FAA requirements,” the statement read.
“The individual inspections are expected to take up to 12 hours per aircraft.”
What is FAA's Corrective Action Review Board?
The FAA issued its final directives to airlines on Wednesday, after reviewing data from 40 inspections of grounded planes. The administration also formed a Corrective Action Review Board of safety experts to evaluate and approve the inspection and maintenance process.
The process involved checking specific bolts, guide tracks and fittings, visually inspecting left and right mid-cabin exit door plugs and related components, retorquing fasteners and fixing any damage or issues.
The FAA grounded about 171 Max 9s around the world after a door plug detached from an Alaska plane shortly after it took off from Portland International Airport on Jan. 5. The passengers recorded a video of the hole left by the missing plug. The plane landed safely without any serious injuries.
The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the cause of the incident. The FAA also increased its oversight of Boeing and started an audit of its production and manufacturing practices.
Boeing said in a statement on Wednesday that it would fully cooperate with the FAA and follow its guidance to improve its safety and quality standards.
“We will also work closely with our airline customers as they complete the required inspection procedures to safely return their 737-9 airplanes to service,” the statement added.
United’s COO Toby Enqvist told the employees in a note that the company planned to fly the Max 9 again on Sunday. Alaska’s CEO Ben Minicucci said during an earnings call on Thursday that the airline expected to have its entire Max 9 fleet back in service by the first week of February.
