NTSB: Multiple system failures led to Alaska Airlines door plug blowout
Alaska Airlines flight: Missing door plug found
Flight and aviation expert Steve Giordano joins LiveNOW's Andrew Craft to talk about the missing door plug that was found from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. He also discusses United Airlines finding loose bolts on some Boeing 737 Max 9s.
The National Transportation Safety Board found that multiple system failures led to the door plug flying off during Alaska Airlines flight 1282 minutes after takeoff.
What's next:
Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems — the company that made and installed the door plug — are redesigning them with another backup system to keep the panels in place even if the bolts are missing, but that improvement isn’t likely to be certified by the FAA until 2026 at the soonest.
NTSB board meeting latest
11:45 a.m. ET - National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said the investigation over the past 17 months found bigger problems than just the revelation that bolts securing what is known as the door plug panel were removed and never replaced during a repair because "an accident like this only happens when there are multiple system failures."
Watch live:
An uninterrupted livestream of the board meeting was available from the NTSB here.
Alaska Airlines door plug blowout
FILE - In this National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) handout, plastic covers the exterior of the fuselage plug area of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 MAX on January 7, 2024 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by NTSB via Getty Images)
In short:
A 2-foot-by-4-foot piece of fuselage covering an unoperational emergency exit behind the left wing blew out as the plane flew at 16,000 feet.
Dig deeper:
The blowout aboard Alaska Airlines flight 1282 occurred minutes after it took off from Portland, Oregon, on Jan. 5, 2024.
It created a roaring air vacuum that sucked objects out of the cabin and scattered them on the ground below, along with debris.
Seven passengers and one flight attended received minor injuries, but no one was killed. Pilots were able to land the Boeing 737 Max 9 safely back at the airport.
RELATED: Boeing CEO testifies before Senate after admitting 'serious missteps'
The investigation:
The investigation has already revealed that bolts were never replaced after the door plug was removed during a repair.
READ MORE: NTSB: Alaska Airlines jet was missing four bolts that secured door plug at time of blowout
The Source: Information in this article was taken from previous FOX Television Station reportings and The Associated Press. This story was reported from Detroit.