Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) caused “multiple system failures” that led to an Alaska Airlines door blowing off mid-flight in January 2024, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said during a meeting on Tuesday.
The incident with the Boeing 737 Max 9 occurred on Flight 1282 shortly after takeoff from Portland, Oregon, and was caused by door plug bolts that were removed during repairs and never reinstalled. The missing bolts allowed the door to shift and eventually open mid-flight, wreaking havoc among 171 passengers.
“An accident like this only happens when there are multiple system failures,” NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said. Ineffective FAA oversight and Boeing’s failure in documenting the work done on the door plug – which led crews to overlook the missing bolts – caused the incident, according to the board.
“The safety deficiencies that led to this accident should have been evident to Boeing and to the FAA,” Homendy said.
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Last year’s incident highlights what the board said was Boeing’s broader pattern of safety issues, including unapproved part removals, inadequate employee training and a flawed process of handling change.
Boeing said the company has taken immediate action since the incident and is continuing efforts to improve its operations.
“We at Boeing regret this accident and continue to work on strengthening safety and quality across our operations,” Boeing told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. “We will review the final report and recommendations as we continue to implement improvements.”
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The NTSB criticized the FAA for failing to catch what it said were Boeing’s ongoing compliance and operations issues.
“I have lots of questions about where FAA was during all of this,” Homendy said. “The FAA is the absolute last barrier of defense when it comes to ensuring aviation safety, protecting the more than 1 billion passengers and crew members who fly on U.S. and foreign airlines annually.”
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The FAA said in a statement Tuesday that the administration is taking NTSB recommendations “seriously,” adding that it will not lift its monthly Boeing 737 production cap until the FAA is “confident the company can maintain safety and quality while making more aircraft.”
“The FAA takes NTSB recommendations seriously and will carefully evaluate those issued today,” the FAA said. “The FAA has fundamentally changed how it oversees Boeing since the Alaska Airlines door-plug accident, and we will continue this aggressive oversight to ensure Boeing fixes its systemic production-quality issues.”
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BA | THE BOEING CO. | 198.97 | -1.94 | -0.96% |
“We are actively monitoring Boeing’s performance and meet weekly with the company to review its progress and any challenges it’s facing in implementing necessary changes,” the FAA added. “We have a full complement of safety inspectors in Boeing’s facilities, and they are conducting more targeted audits and inspections.”
Pilots were able to land the aircraft safely following the blowout. Several passengers suffered minor injuries, but all travelers survived the incident.
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