The American Civil Aviation Regulatory Agency (FAA) announced Friday that all 737 MAX 9 planes will remain grounded until their manufacturer Boeing provides more data on the mid-flight stall of a door. of an Alaska Airlines aircraft.
“For the safety of American travelers, the FAA is grounding the Boeing 737-9 MAX until comprehensive inspections and maintenance operations are completed and the data collected is reviewed,” it said. the FAA in a press release. A door came loose on January 5 from the cabin of a Boeing 737 MAX 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight which was to connect Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California, but the incident only caused a few minor injuries and the plane was able to land safely at its original airport.
A security investigation still underway
The FAA has launched a safety investigation into the incident, the first major flight safety issue on a Boeing plane since fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that led to a lengthy grounding of the plane. “We are working to make sure nothing like this ever happens again,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said. “Our only concern is the safety of American travelers and the Boeing 737-9 MAX will not be back in the air until we are completely satisfied that it is safe.”
The FAA said it needed additional information from Boeing before approving the inspection and maintenance instructions proposed by the manufacturer. The regulator said it “will not approve the inspection and maintenance process until it has reviewed the data from the first round of 40 inspections”, but added that it was “encouraging ” the “exhaustive aspect of the instructions exercised by Boeing in terms of inspections and maintenance”.
“Assess the associated security risks”
Earlier Friday, the FAA announced it plans to increase its oversight of Boeing production and manufacturing, including auditing the 737 MAX production line and suppliers. The regulator said it is also exploring the use of an independent third party to oversee Boeing inspections. “It is time to re-examine the delegation of authority and assess the associated security risks,” Mr. Whitaker said. “The grounding of the 737-9 and multiple production-related issues identified in recent years require us to examine all options to reduce risk,” he said.
Hundreds of flights had to be canceled due to the FAA’s grounding of planes. Alaska Airlines, which operates a fleet of 65 737-9 MAX aircraft, announced that it had to cancel 110 to 150 flights per day until Tuesday.