The Federal Aviation Administration extended the hold for Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft to operate in the United States indefinitely.
This is bad news specifically for Alaska Airlines, its flights from and to Hawaii to the U.S. mainland, and United Airlines.
ANA Flight B737 Max 8 found a crack in the cockpit window
In the meantime a domestic flight on Japan’s All Nippon Airways returned to its departure airport on Saturday after a crack was found on the cockpit window of the Boeing 737-MAX8 aircraft midair, a spokesperson for the airline said.
Even though this issue does not involve any of the problems related to B737-MAX 9, it’s another question mark on how Boeing is manufacturing safe passenger planes.
ANA Flight 1182 was originally flying towards Toyama airport, but it had to return to the Sapporo-New Chitose airport due to the discovery of a crack on the outer layer of the four windows surrounding the cockpit. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported among the 59 passengers and six crew members.
United Airlines Airbus A319 emergency Landing in Tampa
On Thursday a United Airlines Airbus A319 made an emergency landing in Tampa, Florida, after it reported problems with a door in midflight. This is raising a possible more widespread issue not only involving Boeing but also its European competitor Airbus. There was no immediate comment on this incident released by Airbus at this time.
The Airbus A319 Neo is another small aircraft authorized to cross the Pacific Ocean to destinations, such as Hawaii.
The Airbus A319 has an impeccable safety record, with no fatal accidents to passengers.
The A319 is a smaller aircraft compared to the B737-MAX9 with less capacity, but similar in many ways. The emergency in Tampa is very different from the Alaska Airlines incident in Portland, Oregon last week and less severe.
| Airbus A319 | versus | Boeing 737 MAX 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33.84 m | 111 ft | length | 42.16 m | 138 ft 4 in |
| 34.10 m | 111 ft 10 in | wingspan | 35.92 m | 117 ft 10 in |
| 122.60 m2 | 1,320 ft2 | wingarea | 127.00 m2 | 1,367 ft2 |
| 11.70 m | 38 ft 5 in | height | 12.30 m | 40 ft 4 in |
| 2 | engines | 2 | ||
| 120 kN | 27,000 lbf | thrust per engine | 130 kN | 29,317 lbf |
| 240 kN | 54,000 lbf | total thrust | 260 kN | 58,634 lbf |
| 75,500 kgs | 166,000 lbs | MTOW | 88,314 kgs | 195,000 lbs |
| 6,800 km | 3,672 nm | range | 6,570 km | 3,548 nm |
| M0.78 | cruise speed | M0.79 | ||
| 124 passengers | capacity | 193 passengers | ||
| 160 passengers | max. capacity | 220 passengers | ||
The FAA said in a press release issued Friday evening:
After taking decisive and immediate action to ground approximately 171 Boeing 737-9 MAX planes, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today announced new and significant actions to immediately increase its oversight of Boeing production and manufacturing. These actions come one day after the FAA formally notified Boeing that the FAA has launched an investigation into the company as a result of last Friday’s incident on a Boeing Model 737-9 MAX in which the aircraft lost a passenger door plug while in flight.
The actions announced today include the FAA conducting:
- An audit involving the Boeing 737-9 MAX production line and its suppliers to evaluate Boeing’s compliance with its approved quality procedures. The results of the FAA’s audit analysis will determine whether additional audits are necessary.
- Increased monitoring of Boeing 737-9 MAX in-service events.
- Assessment of safety risks around delegated authority and quality oversight, and examination of options to move these functions under independent, third-party entities.
Safety Risks
“It is time to re-examine the delegation of authority and assess any associated safety risks,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said. “The grounding of the 737-9 and the multiple production-related issues identified in recent years require us to look at every option to reduce risk. The FAA is exploring the use of an independent third party to oversee Boeing’s inspections and its quality system.”
Yesterday, the FAA announced an investigation to determine if Boeing failed to ensure completed products conformed to its approved design and were in a condition for safe operation in compliance with FAA regulations
The safety of the flying public, not speed, will determine the timeline for returning the Boeing 737 9 MAX to service.
