Boeing Trouble

By: Caleb Daniels

On January 5th of this year, a dramatic but not fatal accident happened to an Alaska Airlines plane flying out of Portland, Oregon. This plane was the Boeing 737 Max 9, a very controversial plane. Many people have doubts about it, seeing as two were involved in fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 that were caused by errors in the system for flight control. These two crashes happened in Indonesia and in Ethiopia, and they ended up causing all 737 Max 9’s to be prevented from flying for 20 months.

The problem with the door plug was that it was missing bolts that secured it to the main body of the plane. Evidence found shows that these critical pieces were completely gone, not just loose. To make it worse, a picture of the plane from before it was sent to the airline clearly showed that the bolts are missing. This plane had flown for about three months before the plug popped off, meaning that other 737s missing the bolts could have an unexpected accident at any time, even if they hadn’t had issues in the past. This was the cause of a 19 day grounding to ensure that the others were safe. 

This crash may not have caused any serious injury, but it could have killed people had circumstances been different. Because there was no one sitting right next to the mid-exit door (MED), there were no people sucked out of it to fall to their death from 10,000 feet in the air. The reason that holes in planes can cause this is because of the difference in pressure. The cabin of a plane is pressurized so that passengers and crew can have oxygen to breathe. Because there is less air pressure high up outside the cabin, the pressure tends to escape the plane cabin, bringing the air and loose objects out of the plane. If this pressure is strong enough, it can suck a human (even buckled in) out of the door if they are close enough.

Other Boeing planes are also now being questioned, such as the 787 Dreamliner (which has also been found to have major safety issues, causing a sudden drop on one flight midair and injuring many passengers). Boeing was often associated with safety in the past, but after all of the problems, it has ruined its reputation. However, if they fix their issues and people regain trust, maybe soon the public will trust Boeing again.

Sources:

Isidore, Chris. "The Alaska Air flight was terrifying. It could have been so much worse." CNN, 18 Feb. 2024, www.cnn.com/2024/02/18/business/alaska-air-boeing-max-flight/index.html.

Muntean, Pete, et al. " FAA finds ‘multiple instances’ of Boeing quality control issues." CNN, 4 Mar. 2024.

Muntean, Pete, et al. "Key bolts were missing from a Boeing door plug that blew out in mid-air, report says." CNN, 7 Feb. 2024, www.cnn.com/2024/02/06/business/ntsb-boeing-alaska-door-plug-blowout-faa/index.html.

Wallace, Gregory, and Chris Isidore. " The FAA flags more potential safety issues on Boeing’s 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner." CNN, 1 Mar. 2024, www.cnn.com/2024/03/01/business/faa-boeing-737-max-787-dreamliner-safety-issues/index.html.

Wallace, Gregory. " FAA gives Boeing 90 days to come up with a plan to address quality issues." CNN, 28 Feb. 2024, www.cnn.com/2024/02/28/business/faa-boeing-90-days/index.html.