A school teacher named Bob made an unexpected discovery in his garden, finding the missing door plug torn off from an Alaska Airlines flight during a mid-air incident. The incident led to an emergency landing on Friday after a hole was ripped into the side of the Boeing 737 Max 9 plane, carrying 171 passengers from Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) identified the recovered door plug, which is considered a crucial component in determining the cause of the accident. NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy emphasized the significance of this part in their investigation.
The mid-air incident occurred after pilots had reported pressurization warning lights on three earlier flights of the same jet model in December and January. Despite the warnings, the airline had restricted the aircraft from making long flights over water.
During the incident, a 27kg panel blew off the side of the aircraft, causing rapid depressurization inside the plane. The cockpit door was blown open, complicating communication between the flight crew. The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) had no data, as it was not retrieved within two hours, impacting the investigation.
In response to the incident, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 planes for inspections, resulting in numerous flight cancellations. Alaska Airlines canceled 170 flights on Sunday and an additional 60 on Monday, with more expected throughout the week.
Despite the pressurization warnings reported earlier, Alaska Airlines stated that all write-ups related to the aircraft’s pressurization system were evaluated and resolved according to approved maintenance procedures and FAA regulations. Fortunately, no injuries occurred during the incident, and the plane landed safely back in Portland.