(TargetDailyNews.com) – A Boeing aircraft that suffered a damaging blowout of its emergency door just minutes after takeoff had previously been restricted from flying over water after warning lights indicated a pressurization problem on three prior flights.
The indicator lights went off during the flight and then returned to normal, leading airline officials to restrict the plane to flying over land in case of an emergency, according to statements from National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy.
Homendy warned that the light may not be involved in the accident where an exit door flew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 airliner as it was flying over Oregon on January 5th. The warning lights flashed on three previous flights, on January 4th, 3rd, and December 7th, according to Homendy.
The door that flew off the plane was actually a plug designed to maintain the hull of the aircraft in the absence of a door. It’s unclear why there was a plug instead of a door on the aircraft at the time of the accident. The plug was found in Portland, Oregon by a teacher who noticed it in his backyard. NTSB investigators will examine the object for indications as to what caused the accident.
Homendy said that the accident caused chaos on the plane as the explosive force of depressurization forced air out of the cabin instantly. The cockpit doors ripped open and the pilot and co-pilot lost parts of their headsets. Thankfully, they were able to safely return to the Portland airport and no one on the aircraft was harmed or injured.
The FAA grounded 171 of the Max 9s flying in the U.S. just hours after the incident, mandating that the jets flying for Alaska Airlines and United Airlines undergo an inspection before being returned to service. Both airlines are still waiting for instructions by Boeing on how to perform the inspections. When multiple airlines have to perform the same kinds of work there has to be a “multi-operator message” which contains specific instructions for the work.
Boeing has yet to submit the bulletin to the FAA for final approval and declined to comment to Newsmax regarding the incident.
The New York Times is reporting that the latest theory as of Monday, January 8th is that the plug was not properly installed and was missing key parts that kept it attached to the plane.
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