‘Many’ Alaska Airlines Planes Had Loose Bolts, CEO Says

Alaska Airlines’ investigation into its Boeing 737 Max 9 jets continues after the scary Jan. 5 incident that resulted in an emergency landing from 16,000 feet. It all happened because of loose bolts on a door plug, which is sometimes built into the body of the plane in replacement of an emergency exit. Now, the company’s CEO is giving an update on what they’ve found. 

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci spoke to NBC News about what it’s found since grounding its entire fleet of 65 Boeing 737 Max 9s. He admitted that “many” of the planes that mechanics have been looking at had loose bolts just like the one earlier this month carrying 177 people. 

“I’m more than frustrated and disappointed,” he said. “I am angry. This happened to Alaska Airlines. It happened to our guests and happened to our people. And my demand on Boeing is, what are they going to do to improve their quality programs in-house?”

While Alaska Airlines continues to cancel and rearrange flights as a result of dozens of planes being out of commission, the airline is ensuring they have eyes on how each of their Boeing aircraft in the future is made. “We’re sending our audit people to audit their quality control systems and processes to make sure that every aircraft that comes off that production line, that comes to Alaska has the highest levels of excellence and quality,” he said.

Meanwhile, United Airlines, which operates even more Max 9s than Alaska, found similar issues with its planes. “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,” the company said in a statement, per The Air Current. “These findings will be remedied by our Tech Ops team to safely return the aircraft to service.”

For now, all 737 Max 9s remain grounded as the FAA hasn’t yet determined the maintenance standards that each plane is required to adhere to before returning to the air. Boeing laments what has transpired. “We have let down our airline customers and are deeply sorry for the significant disruption to them, their employees, and their passengers,” the company told NBC News. “We are taking action on a comprehensive plan to bring these airplanes safely back to service and to improve our quality and delivery performance. We will follow the lead of the FAA and support our customers every step of the way.”