a window flies away after takeoff, Alaska Airlines grounds its Boeing 737-9

Images posted on social media showed a plane window blown out, with oxygen masks hanging from the aircraft’s ceiling. The incident occurred on Friday evening.

An Alaska Airlines plane, with 177 people on board, had to make an emergency landing in Oregon (United States) on Friday January 5 evening. Passengers reported that a window panel flew off after takeoff, the company said.

Flight 1282 took off from Portland International Airport around 5 p.m. local time before returning safely “after the crew reported a pressurization problem”, declared on the social network X (formerly Twitter) the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Images posted on social media showed a plane window blown out, with oxygen masks hanging from the aircraft’s ceiling.

A passenger on the flight, Kyle Rinker, explained to American television CNN that the window had blown off just after takeoff. “It was really brutal. Barely at altitude, the window cover just came off and I only noticed it when the oxygen masks came down”he said.

Alaska Airlines Boeings grounded

The plane was finally able to land safely in Portland, about twenty minutes after taking off. The National Transportation Safety Board, the FAA and Alaska Airlines each said they were investigating the incident.

After this incident, Alaska Airlines decided to ground its 65 Boeing 737-9s. “Each device will only be returned to service upon completion of comprehensive maintenance and safety inspections”assured Alaska Airlines boss Ben Minicucci in a press release.

The American Federal Civil Aviation Agency (FAA) for its part ordered the immediate inspection of 171 Boeing 737-9 aircraft, which were suspended from flight. The FAA directive requires airlines “to inspect the aircraft before a new flight”estimating that this operation required between 4 and 8 hours by plane.