U.S. airlines have been temporarily ordered to ground some Boeing planes after an Alaskan Airlines flight was forced into an emergency landing when a piece of the airplane’s body was blown out. Thankfully, while there were no serious injuries after a sizable portion of the Boeing 737 Max 9 flew out, there was a child seated near the blown-out piece, according to KPTV-TV.
The little boy’s mother held him as the airliner bound for California made its emergency landing at Portland International Airport. The child’s shirt was sucked out of the airplane due to the sudden depressurization, and his skin was reportedly irritated and reddened by the violent wind filling the plane’s cabin.
One passenger told The New York Times what she witnessed during the ordeal. She said, “I open up my eyes, and the first thing I see is the oxygen mask right in front of me,” she said. “And I look to the left, and the wall on the side of the plane is gone. The first thing I thought was, ‘I’m going to die.’”
There were reportedly over 170 passengers on the plane, along with six crew members. After the incident, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered airlines in the U.S. to stop using some Boeing 737-9 airplanes temporarily, The Times reported. Jessica Kowal, a spokeswoman for Boeing, said, “Safety is our top priority, and we deeply regret the impact this event has had on our customers and their passengers. We agree with and fully support the F.A.A.’s decision to require immediate inspections of 737-9 airplanes with the same configuration as the affected airplane.”
Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said such aircrafts “will be returned to service only after completion of full maintenance and safety inspections.” He said, “We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what occurred tonight and will share updates as more information is available. My heart goes out to those who were on this flight — I am so sorry for what you experienced. I am so grateful for the response of our pilots and flight attendants.”
The incident remains under investigation by Alaska Airlines, but again, thankfully, no one was seriously injured during this bizarre incident.