The Boeing Aircraft Safety Expansion After Two Flights with the Same Engine Defect and Missing Anti-Icing Control in 2018 and 2020

The Seattle Times reported yesterday that Boeing had asked the FAA for a safety exemption for the smaller plane that is yet to get certified. The plane apparently has a defect that could cause an engine nacelle to break up. The article says existing 737 Max planes with the same defect are allowed to continue operating so long as pilots turn off the plane’s anti-ice system after “icing conditions dissipate to avoid overheating,” which could damage the nacelle. Boeing referred to nacelle break down in its petition, according to the reports.

All of its Boeing Max 9 aircraft were grounded late Friday until the airline can inspect them. On Saturday, Alaska Airlines said it had completed inspections for more than a quarter of its planes and there were “no concerning findings.”

The cabin was depressurized due to the gaping hole that had been caused after takeoff. The plane climbed to 16,000 feet before heading back to Portland International Airport.

In 2021, Boeing will pay more than 2.5 billion dollars to resolve a criminal charge related to the crashes. Under the deal, Boeing was ordered to pay a criminal penalty of $243.6 million while $500 million went toward a fund for the families whose loved ones were killed in the crashes. The rest of the settlement was marked off to airlines that had purchased the problematic planes.

But it wasn’t just manufacturing flaws. A report by the Department of Transportation’s inspector general found that the company failed to tell regulators about critical changes it made to its flight control system. The report concluded that Boeing did this in order to expedite the plane’s certification process.

It was determined by investigators that a part of the blame was the company’s new flight control system. In both of the incidents, the system known as MCAS acted on a faulty sensor, forcing both planes to nosedive even though the pilots tried to regain control.

The aircraft’s safety problems were under global scrutiny after deadly crashes in Indonesia in 2018 and Ethiopia in 2019 — which killed a total of 346 people. The first US commercial flight of Boeing’s MAX aircraft took place in December of 2020.

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a post on X that it was investigating an event on the flight and would post updates when they are available. The FAA also said that it would investigate.

Oxygen masks were deployed as the plane quickly returned to Portland International Airport. The flight had 171 passengers and six crew members on board. There were no casualties or serious injuries reported.

Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 took off from Portland, Ore., shortly after 5 p.m. PST Friday, bound for Ontario, Calif. According to social media posts, it appeared that a window and piece of fuselage had broken off midair — leaving a gaping hole on the plane’s left side.

“The MAX -8 aircraft in our existing fleet and the -7 in our future fleet do not have the exit door plug involved in the Friday evening event. Our fleet and operation are unaffected,” a Southwest spokesperson said in a statement.

Southwest Airlines and American Airlines toldNPR that they don’t carry Boeing planes. Max 9s. Both airlines said that the Boeing 737 Max 8 model does not raise any concern.

An Alaska Airlines Flight with a Blowout from an Anti-ice Anti-Air Max in Portland, Or: An Emergency Landing Resolved

Last year, the FAA told pilots to limit use of an anti-ice system on the Max in dry conditions because of concern that inlets around the engines could overheat and break away, possibly striking the plane.

The newest version of Boeing’s popular plane is called the MAX and is frequently used in the U.S. The plane went into service in May 2017.

The plane had been on more than 100 flights since it entered commercial service. The flight from Portland was the aircraft’s third of the day.

A passenger sent KATU-TV in Portland a photo showing the hole in the side of the airplane next to passenger seats. People were clapping and wearing oxygen masks as the plane touched down.

The pilot told Portland air traffic controllers the plane had an emergency, was depressurized and needed to return to the airport, according to a recording made by the website LiveATC.net.

The plane was diverted about about six minutes after taking off at 5:07 p.m., according to flight tracking data from the FlightAware website. It landed at 5:26 p.m.

After full maintenance and safety checks, each of the aircraft will return to service, said Minicucci.

Alaska Airlines grounded all of its Boeing 737-9 aircraft late Friday, hours after a window and piece of fuselage on one such plane blew out in midair and forced an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon.