FBI probing Alaska Airlines flight with blown-out door plug as 'possible crime'

Simon Druker
·3 min read
2
The 171 passengers aboard an Alaska Airlines flight in January that suffered a sudden midair decompression when a fuselage panel unexpectedly blew out, may have been the victims of a crime according to the FBI. File Photo courtesy of National Transportation Safety Board
The 171 passengers aboard an Alaska Airlines flight in January that suffered a sudden midair decompression when a fuselage panel unexpectedly blew out, may have been the victims of a crime according to the FBI. File Photo courtesy of National Transportation Safety Board

March 22 (UPI) -- The 171 passengers aboard an Alaska Airlines flight in January that suffered a sudden mid-air decompression when a fuselage panel unexpectedly blew out may have been the victims of a crime, according to the FBI.

The bureau sent letters to all passengers who were on board the Boeing 737 Max 9 jet, advising they are being treated as a "possible victim of a crime," the Seattle Times reported Thursday, after receiving a copy from one traveler.

The letter from the FBI Seattle field office also urged passengers to set up a profile through the Victim Notification Program operated by the U.S. Department of Justice.

"A criminal investigation can be a lengthy undertaking, and for several reasons, we cannot tell you about its progress at the time," the letter sent by the FBI informs passengers.

The agency is not elaborating publicly on the case.

The FBI sent letters to all passengers who were on board the Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 jet, advising they are being treated as a “possible victim of a crime,” the Seattle Times reported Thursday, after receiving a copy from one traveler. File Photo courtesy Alaska Airlines
The FBI sent letters to all passengers who were on board the Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 jet, advising they are being treated as a “possible victim of a crime,” the Seattle Times reported Thursday, after receiving a copy from one traveler. File Photo courtesy Alaska Airlines

"The FBI does not confirm or deny the existence of an investigation," the FBI Seattle's Public Affairs Office told CNN in an email.

Earlier in March, the Justice Department reportedly opened a criminal investigation into the Jan. 5 incident, NBC News reported, citing sources within the department. That investigation will also look at whether Boeing failed to comply with earlier directives to fix problems stemming from the crash of two other Boeing 737 Max jets just over a year apart. Lion Air flight JT-610 crashed just after take off in 2018, killing 189 people, while 157 people died in the crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 in March of 2019.

The Boeing jet had just taken off from Portland International Airport in Oregon on Jan. 5, 2024 bound for Ontario, Calif., when only a handful of minutes into the flight, a plug used to seal an unused emergency exit detached, causing the emergency decompression. File Photo courtesy of National Transportation Safety Board
The Boeing jet had just taken off from Portland International Airport in Oregon on Jan. 5, 2024 bound for Ontario, Calif., when only a handful of minutes into the flight, a plug used to seal an unused emergency exit detached, causing the emergency decompression. File Photo courtesy of National Transportation Safety Board

"We want answers. We want accountability. We want safer Boeing planes. And a DOJ investigation helps advance our goals," attorney Mark Lindquist, who represents some passengers on the flight, told NBC News in a Friday interview.

The Boeing jet had just taken off from Portland International Airport in Oregon bound for Ontario, Calif., when only a handful of minutes into the flight, a plug used to seal an unused emergency exit detached, causing the emergency decompression.

Seattle-based Alaska Airlines then grounded its 737 Max 9 fleet while the Federal Aviation Administration also ordered some of the planes operated by other carriers to be grounded. File Photo by Cityswift/Flickr
Seattle-based Alaska Airlines then grounded its 737 Max 9 fleet while the Federal Aviation Administration also ordered some of the planes operated by other carriers to be grounded. File Photo by Cityswift/Flickr

Pilots were forced to make an emergency landing back in Portland.

The missing door plug was discovered days later by a Portland-area resident who found it in his back yard.

The Seattle-based airline then grounded its 737 Max 9 fleet while the Federal Aviation Administration also ordered some of the planes operated by other carriers to be grounded.

Later that month, the FAA banned Boeing from expanding production of the aircraft.

In February, FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker said he would hold Boeing responsible, after a number of separate incidents involving the company's aircraft occurred following the Alaska Airlines incident.