Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft temporarily grounded in the United States
The Federal Aviation Administration of the United States ordered a temporary suspension of Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by American airlines or within the United States for safety inspections.
The Federal Aviation Administration of the United States stated that this emergency airworthiness directive will affect approximately 171 aircraft, and operators are required to inspect the aircraft in accordance with the directive before resuming flights. According to statistics, Boeing has delivered 218 737 MAX 9 aircraft worldwide.
An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft crashed in the air shortly after takeoff from Portland, Oregon on the 5th, and immediately made an emergency landing without causing any casualties. At that time, the plane was carrying 174 passengers and 6 crew members. According to US media reports, photos taken by passengers on board show a damaged area on the side of the cabin next to the passenger's seat. After the accident, Alaska Airlines announced that it would ground all of its aircraft of the same model.
Boeing issued a statement on the 6th expressing support for the Federal Aviation Administration's decision to immediately conduct safety inspections on the 737 MAX 9 aircraft with the same configuration as the accident aircraft.
The National Transportation Safety Commission of the United States has dispatched personnel to Portland on the 6th to investigate the accident.
In October 2018 and March 2019, there were air crashes on flights of Lion Air Indonesia and Ethiopian Airlines, resulting in a total of 346 fatalities. The crashed planes were both Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. The Boeing 737 MAX aircraft was subsequently grounded in multiple countries and regions around the world for nearly two years.