The grounding of all Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft has been extended indefinitely pending new safety inspections and a review of the results after a cabin panel was blown off one of the jets last week. announced by the Federal Aviation Administration Friday.
The continued grounding, which affected 171 jets, follows a horrific incident on January 5 when an Alaska Airlines plane suddenly lost its door plug while flying at 16,000 feet, forcing an emergency flight. Then it happened. Landed in Portland, Oregon.
FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker: “We're working to make sure this never happens again.'' he told Fox Business..
“Our only concern is the safety of American travelers, and the Boeing 737-9 Max will not return to the skies until we are completely satisfied that it is safe.”
Aviation regulators announced on Monday that the grounding would be lifted after inspection of the aircraft.
The FAA said Friday that it would need to re-inspect 40 planes and scrutinize the results to see if the Max 9 is safe enough to fly again.
Since last week's aerial horror show, Alaska Airlines and United Airlines have announced that inspections of their grounded Max 9 jets found loose bolts, fittings and other problems.
with post wire
