NTSB Begins Hearings on Boeing 737 MAX 9 Door Plug Blowout on Alaska Airlines

Aug 6, 2024, 10:59 AM

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has commenced a two-day hearing to investigate the mid-air blowout of a door plug from a Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft, which occurred on January 5, 2024, aboard Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. Key witnesses from Boeing, Spirit AeroSystems, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are set to testify. The incident, which resulted in the loss of a fuselage section over Portland, has raised significant safety concerns and legal challenges for Boeing. Elizabeth Lund, Boeing's Senior Vice President of Quality, will be among those testifying. The NTSB has released documents ahead of the hearing, highlighting systemic issues of employees not following instructions and revealing that Boeing's 737 MAX production fell to eight planes per month following the incident.