Window of Alaska Airlines plane blows out mid-air, all safe

Portland (US), January 6

Alaska Airlines grounded all of its Boeing 737-9 aircraft late on Friday, hours after a window and piece of fuselage on one such plane blew out in mid-air and forced an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon. The jetliner was three miles above Oregon shortly after takeoff when the incident took place on Friday night, creating a gaping hole that sucked clothing off a child and forced the pilots to make an emergency landing as its 174 passengers and six crew members donned oxygen masks.

‘We need to turn back to Portland,” the pilot told controllers in a calm voice that she maintained throughout the landing process. No one was seriously hurt as the depressurised plane returned safely to Portland International Airport about 20 minutes after it had departed, but the airline grounded its 65 Boeing 737-9 aircraft until they can be inspected. The National Transportation Safety Board said on Saturday it would also investigate.

Passenger Evan Smith said a boy and his mother were sitting in the row where the window blew out and the child’s shirt was sucked off him and out of the plane.

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said the inspection of the company 737-9 fleet aircraft could take days to complete. They make up a fifth of the company’s 314 planes. It wasn’t immediately known on Saturday how that would affect the company’s flight schedule. “We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what occurred … and will share updates as more information is available,” Minicucci said.

“My heart goes out to those who were on this flight – I am so sorry for what you experienced.” The Port of Portland, which operates the airport, said the fire department treated minor injuries at the scene. One person was taken for more treatment, but wasn’t seriously hurt.

Videos posted by passengers online showed a gaping hole where the window had been and passengers wearing their masks. They applauded when the plane landed safely about 13 minutes after the window blew out. Firefighters then came down the aisles, asking passengers to remain in their seats as they treated the injured. The aircraft involved rolled off the assembly line and received its certification just two months ago, according to online FAA records. The plane had been on 145 flights since entering commercial service on Nov. 11, said FlightRadar24, another tracking service. The flight from Portland was the aircraft’s third of the day.

The Max is the newest version of Boeing’s venerable 737, a twin-engine, single-aisle plane frequently used on US domestic flights. The plane went into service in May 2017.

Two Max 8 jets crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people and leading to a near two-year worldwide grounding of all Max 8 and Max 9 planes. The planes returned to service. — AP