Boeing 737 MAX 9 inspections multiply after a door flew off during an Alaska Airlines flight

Like several American companies, Turkish Airlines, Aeromexico and Copa Airlines have grounded their Boeing 737 MAX 9s in order to inspect them.

The Boeing 737 MAX 9 inspection movement spread around the world on Sunday January 7, two days after an incident on a plane of the American company Alaska Airlines, which lost a door in mid-flight.

Like several American companies such as United Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Aeromexico and the Panamanian company Copa Airlines have grounded their Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes to inspect them. These decisions follow a directive from the United States Federal Civil Aviation Agency (FAA), which ordered on Saturday the immediate inspection of 171 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft. The duration of the operation is estimated between 4 and 8 hours per plane.

The incident occurred on Friday, shortly after an Alaska Airlines flight took off from Portland International Airport in Oregon (United States) to Ontario, California. According to the American Transportation Safety Agency (NTSB), a door opened and detached from the cabin in mid-flight. The aircraft, which was carrying 171 passengers and 6 crew members, was then at an altitude of almost 5,000 m. After turning around, the plane returned to land in Portland, the incident causing only a few minor injuries.

No “element of concern” at this stage, according to Alaska Airlines

United Airlines, which has the largest fleet of 737-9s in the world, announced to AFP that it was leaving 46 aircraft on the ground. Thirty-three have already been examined.

Alaska Airlines, which had neutralized all of its 65 planes of this model even before the FAA’s announcement, clarified on Saturday on “more than a quarter” of its fleet of 737 MAX-9s had been inspected. The company said it had not found at this stage “element of concern”.

Copa Airlines has suspended the operation of its 21 aircraft of this model for verification, and Turkish Airlines the operation of the five it owns.