United finds loose bolts on 737 MAX aircraft
United Airlines has found loose bolts during inspections of its fleet of Boeing 737 MAX-9s, as scrutiny grows of the US plane-maker and its beleaguered narrow-body.
The carrier said: “Since…
United Airlines has found loose bolts during inspections of its fleet of Boeing 737 MAX-9s, as scrutiny grows of the US plane-maker and its beleaguered narrow-body.
The carrier said: “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.”
It follows an incident involving an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX-9 at the weekend which saw a panel blow out at 16,000 feet, causing a rapid depressurisation.
Earlier, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it had located the missing door panel.
NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said Bob, a schoolteacher, had found the panel near his Portland, Oregon home.
“We’re going to go pick that up and make sure that we begin analysing it,” she said.
The NTSB has launched a “Go Team” to Portland to investigate the event involving a Boeing 737-9 MAX during a flight from Portland to Ontario, California.
No serious injuries were reported after the window panel was blown out mid-flight.
Subscribe to the FINN weekly newsletter
