United Discovers Loose Bolts on Boeing Aircraft Following Alaska Airlines Incident — What to Know

09.01.2024 - 15:36 / travelandleisure.com

United Airlines has found loose bolts in its own Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft just days after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded the planes following a mid-air blowout on Alaska Airlines.

“Since we began preliminary inspections on Saturday, we have found instances that appear to relate to installation issues in the door plug – for example, bolts that needed additional tightening,” United said in a statement provided to Travel + Leisure. “These findings will be remedied by our Tech Ops team to safely return the aircraft to service.”

The findings come days after a plug door panel on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 blew out on a flight from Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California. The flight, which was carrying 171 guests and 6 crew members, safely returned to Portland International Airport.

Following that, the FAA issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive requiring “immediate inspections of certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes before they can return to flight.” In the United States, hundreds of flights have since been canceled as a result.

The FAA said its order affects about 171 airplanes around the world.

For its part, United has a total of 79 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft and was forced to cancel 200 flights on Monday alone.

United is removing two rows of seats and the sidewall liner in each affected aircraft to access the door plug and will “inspect and verify proper installation of the door and frame hardware.” The doors will then be re-secured “ensuring proper fit and security.”

Alaska Airlines, which counts 65 Boeing 737-9 in its fleet, introduced a systemwide “flexible travel policy” for travelers who want to change or cancel their flights. The airline said in a statement that all of its aircraft would “be thoroughly inspected in accordance with detailed instructions provided by the FAA in consultation with Boeing.”