According to CCTV News, a Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft carrying over 170 people in the United States recently suffered side damage to the cockpit, with a portion of the fuselage falling into the air, forming a hole similar to the size of a refrigerator. The plane made an emergency landing, causing multiple personnel on board to suffer minor injuries. After the accident, the United States and other countries announced the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft.
American aviation industry experts say the current focus of inspections is on whether there are structural defects in the Boeing 737 MAX 9, in order to avoid repeating the same mistakes as the Boeing 737 MAX 8. In 2018 and 2019, two Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes crashed, resulting in hundreds of deaths. Subsequently, multiple countries around the world grounded the Boeing MAX series for nearly two years. After the investigation, it was found that there were defects in the design and development of MAX series aircraft, as well as defects in the supervision and certification of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
171 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft grounded worldwide
On January 7th local time, the FAA issued a statement stating that 171 investigated Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft worldwide will continue to be grounded. The FAA stated in a statement, "The grounded state will continue until the FAA is confident that they are safe."
Previously, an accident occurred on a Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by Alaska Airlines, resulting in damage to the cabin in the air. The FAA immediately announced an inspection of the relevant aircraft, stating that "ensuring public safety" would be the top priority.
On the evening of January 5th local time, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft took off from Portland, Oregon, heading to Ontario, California. When it reached an altitude of about 16000 feet (about 4900 meters), the left fuselage suddenly broke, causing a sudden drop in pressure inside the cabin. The plane then urgently returned and landed safely in Portland. At that time, there were 171 passengers and 6 crew members on board. The airline reported that multiple personnel on board were lightly injured.
According to American media reports, passengers on board described that shortly after takeoff, a large piece of the plane's fuselage fell off, forming a hole similar to the size of a refrigerator. The photo shows that night sky and ground lights can be seen through the damaged area, and insulation materials and other debris are exposed around the hole. Another passenger said that during an emergency landing, a child's clothing was torn by strong winds.
According to reports, the part of the Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft that fell off this time is a hatch used to close the backup emergency exit, and this configuration exists on some MAX 9 models. The local regulatory authorities called on the public to assist in finding the detached closed hatch after the accident occurred. According to regulatory authorities on January 7th local time, a teacher from Portland found a closed hatch that had fallen in his backyard.
According to Xinhua News Agency, some larger Boeing 737 models have designed emergency escape doors in the cabin position behind the wings to meet emergency evacuation regulations, which require passengers to be able to evacuate within 90 seconds if half of the emergency exits are unavailable. Therefore, the larger the passenger capacity, the more escape hatch doors are installed. Some aviation operators have ordered Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft with a capacity of over 200 passengers, and according to emergency evacuation regulations, escape hatch doors need to be installed on the bulkhead behind the wings. The passenger capacity of this aircraft operated by Alaska Airlines is less than 180 people, so the cabin door at this location is closed.
Boeing also announced that it will hold a staff meeting on January 9th to discuss safety issues. Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun stated that he will "collaborate with customers and regulatory agencies to investigate the cause of the accident.".
Alaska Airlines has grounded 65 related aircraft and announced the cancellation of 163 flights, affecting approximately 25000 passengers. In addition, United Airlines has grounded 79 related aircraft and cancelled approximately 180 flights.
All parties are concerned about whether there are structural defects in the Boeing 737 MAX 9
In addition to Alaska Airlines, Türkiye Airlines, Panama Copa Airlines and Mexico Airlines also grounded the Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft for inspection. Among them, Türkiye Airlines grounded 5 related aircraft; Copa Airlines grounded 21 related aircraft.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) stated that according to its understanding, EASA member operators have not used MAX 9 aircraft with relevant configurations, therefore MAX 9 aircraft within EASA's jurisdiction do not need to be grounded and can operate normally.
According to CCTV News, there are currently no Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft in China's fleet.
Investigators say it is too early to determine the cause of the Alaska Airlines accident. But aviation experts point out that this accident has sparked discussions about Boeing's quality and safety issues.
American Airlines litigation lawyer Robert Clifford told the media that this incident will have a significant reputational impact on Boeing and may require compensation for the airline's revenue losses caused by flight cancellations.
Clifford said that all parties are paying attention to whether there are structural defects in the Boeing 737 MAX 9, and people clearly do not want to repeat the fatal accident of the Boeing 737 MAX 8.
Clifford pointed out that the impact of the Alaska Airlines accident was relatively small because the plane was only 16000 feet (approximately 4900 meters) high at the time. "If such an event occurs at an altitude of 30000 feet (about 9100 meters), it is likely that all human lives on board will be in danger," he said.
Jennifer Hormendy, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Commission of the United States, said that at the time of the accident, the plane was still climbing and had not reached a cruising altitude where passengers could unbutton their seat belts and walk away from their seats. There were also no passengers or casualties in the row of two seats adjacent to the detached cabin door, which was a fortunate coincidence.
Former US aviation accident investigator Jeff Gusetti stated that Boeing cannot rely solely on verbal promises regarding safety issues. He criticized, "Boeing is more inclined towards market competitive advantage rather than safety."
Boeing has experienced frequent accidents and quality issues in recent years
The Boeing 737 MAX series aircraft experienced two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019, resulting in hundreds of deaths and subsequently being grounded by multiple countries around the world for about 20 months. Recently, Boeing has encountered multiple production and quality issues.
On October 29, 2018, a Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft with flight number JT610 from Lion Air Indonesia crashed into the sea after taking off from Jakarta, resulting in the death of all 189 people on board.
On March 10, 2019, an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft took off from Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, with plans to fly to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. Shortly after takeoff, the plane crashed near Bischovtu, about 45 kilometers from the capital, resulting in the deaths of all 149 passengers and 8 crew members on board.
After two fatal accidents, regulatory authorities from multiple countries including China and the United States announced the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX series aircraft. A special panel in the United States House of Representatives conducted an 18 month investigation and found deficiencies in Boeing's design and development of MAX series aircraft, as well as insufficient transparency towards FAA. Meanwhile, FAA also has deficiencies in supervision and certification.
In February 2023, Boeing was forced to suspend the delivery of the 787 Dreamliner due to data analysis errors. Last month, FAA urged airlines to inspect the steering control system of the Boeing 737 MAX model for loose bolts.
Richard Abrauffa, an analyst in the aviation industry in the United States, stated that Boeing's efforts to pressure suppliers to reduce costs, as well as the disconnect between senior management and engineering and production teams, have collectively led to the current difficulties Boeing is facing.
Since the Boeing 737 MAX was grounded by multiple countries worldwide in March 2019, Boeing's stock price has fallen by over 40%. Gusetti pointed out that the latest accident may affect the approval of subsequent Boeing new models of aircraft, and the FAA is currently considering MAX 7 aircraft approval. This accident may "make the authorities inclined to refuse (approval).".