PORTLAND, Oreg. — Alaska Airlines has grounded all of its Boeing MAX 9 planes, after the fuselage of a flight out of Portland blew out shortly after takeoff on Friday night.
That flight -- initially bound for Ontario -- was able to make an emergency landing back at PDX, with no injuries reported to any of the 171 passengers or six crew members.
On Friday, Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci issued a statement announcing that the company’s 65 Boeing MAX-9 planes had been grounded as a “precautionary step.”
The planes will be returned to service “only after completion of full maintenance and safety inspections.” That process is expected to wrap up “in the next few days.”
“We are working with Boeing regulators to understand what occurred and will share more updates as soon as more information is available,” Minicucci said. “The NTSB is investigating this event and we will fully support their investigation.”
You read his full statement here: