A United Airlines Boeing 737-800 lost an external panel mid-flight on Friday, the latest in a series of incidents involving Boeing aircraft. The plane, carrying 139 passengers and 6 crew members, landed safely at its intended destination, Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport, about 70 minutes after departing from San Francisco International Airport.
Airport director Amber Judd told The Post that the missing panel was discovered during a post-flight inspection, prompting a runway safety check that temporarily halted operations at the airport. "After finding no debris on the airfield, normal operations at MFR resumed a few minutes later," Judd said.
United Airlines stated that there was no indication of a problem during the flight and that no emergency was declared. The airline plans to conduct a "thorough examination" of the 25-year-old plane and perform all necessary repairs before returning it to service. "We'll also conduct an investigation to better understand how this damage occurred," United added.
The Federal Aviation Administration will also investigate the incident, according to a spokesperson.
Boeing 737 loses external panel mid-flight after taking off from SFO, as the safety crew for United Airlines Flight 433 forgot to apply duck tape. pic.twitter.com/1iYG2XG1Pd — LV Nilesh (@LVNilesh) March 16, 2024
This incident marks at least the seventh involving a Boeing plane in the last two weeks. On Thursday, an American Airlines flight made an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport due to a "possible mechanical issue" on a Boeing aircraft. Earlier in the week, a United Airlines flight from Sydney to San Francisco was forced to turn around mid-flight due to a fuel leak, while another Boeing 787 Dreamliner en route from Sydney to Auckland experienced a technical issue that resulted in injuries to 50 passengers.
On March 7, a United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Japan diverted to Los Angeles International Airport after a tire on the Boeing 777-20 fell off after takeoff, damaging cars in a parking lot on the ground.
In response to the recent string of incidents, Boeing has informed its employees in a memo that the company will implement weekly compliance checks for every 737 work area and additional equipment audits to reduce quality problems.
The panel found missing on United Flight 433 was located on the underside of the aircraft where the wing meets the body, just next to the landing gear. Despite the concern raised by the incident, the plane landed safely, and no injuries were reported.
"We're grateful that the flight landed safely and that no one was injured," United Airlines said in a statement. "Our team is working diligently to understand the cause of this incident and to ensure that it doesn't happen again."
The missing panel incident on United Flight 433 is reminiscent of a January incident involving an Alaska Airlines Max 9 jet, where a panel plugging a space left for an extra emergency door blew off in midair just minutes after takeoff from Portland, leaving a gaping hole and forcing pilots to make an emergency landing.
As the investigation into the missing panel on United Flight 433 continues, the incident serves as a reminder of the ongoing challenges faced by Boeing and the airline industry in ensuring the safety and reliability of their aircraft. Passengers and industry observers alike will be closely watching the outcome of the investigations and the steps taken by United Airlines and Boeing to address any underlying issues.
