plane door blow-out Image: NATIONAL TRANSPORATION SAFETY BOARD
Plane door blow-out Boeing admits mistake.
Boeing’s CEO has conceded the plane maker was at fault after one of its planes experienced a door blow-out shortly after take-off in the United States.
On Friday, an unused cabin door detached from an Alaska Airlines flight from Portland, Oregon. No one was injured.
Since the incident, the United States has grounded 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 planes.
Boeing’s president and CEO, Dave Calhoun, stated on Tuesday that the company was “acknowledging our mistake.”
The door “plug” that fell off the jet weighed 27kg (60lb) and was meant to fill an emergency exit installed into the plane but not required by Alaska Airlines.
According to the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the missing part of the plane was discovered in the back garden of a Portland teacher.
Investigators have also uncovered that the airline imposed limits on the aircraft following pressurisation warnings in the days preceding the disaster.
Mr. Calhoun told Boeing employees, “We’re going to approach this number one acknowledging our mistake.” We’re going to approach it with complete and total transparency every step of the way.”
Mr. Calhoun told employees that Boeing will assist with the NTSB to determine the cause of the tragedy.
“They will get to a conclusion… the FAA [Federal Aviation Authority] who has to now deal with airline customers who want aeroplanes back in service safely and to ensure all the procedures are put into place, inspections, all the readiness actions that are required to ensure every next aeroplane that moves into the sky is in fact safe and that this event can never happen again,” he told reporters.
“When I got that picture, all I could think about – I didn’t know what happened so whoever was supposed to be in the seat next to that hole in the aeroplane,” the Boeing CEO said, empathising with those who viewed the film in terror.
I have children and grandchildren, as do you. This material is important. Every detail counts.”
Inspections of Boeing 737 Max 9s are ongoing, despite the FAA’s statement that its top priority is “keeping the flying public safe.”