Agency says that FAA decision is applied automatically and that no Brazilian company uses the plane; read the model's problem history
A Anac (National Civil Aviation Agency) reported this Sunday (7 January 2024) that flights with aircraft are also suspended in Brazil Boeing model 737 MAX 9. According to the entity, the decision to immediately suspend operations with the jet determined by the United States regulatory body also automatically applies to operations in Brazil.
The decision (complete in English – 167 kB) from the American Aviation Agency FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) took place after a incident during flight from Alaska Airlines registered on Friday (5th January). An explosion caused one of the plane's side doors to eject, causing depressurization in mid-flight.
According to Anac, none of the Brazilian airlines use the plane. In Brazil, the only operation with the model is carried out by the Panamanian company Copa Airlineswhich uses the jet on international flights arriving and departing at Guarulhos airport (SP).
The airline has already announced the suspension of activities with the plane for the necessary technical review until it is cleared for return to service.
INCIDENT ON ALASKA AIRLINES FLIGHT
Video circulating on social media shows the interior of the plane and a hole on the left side. In the images, you can see what appears to be an emergency exit coming loose. According to Alaska Airlines, the flight returned safely to Portland. On board were 171 passengers and 6 crew. No one was seriously injured.
Watch the video that shows the plane without part of the fuselage (1min14s):
The incident was recorded when the plane was at around 16,000 feet and just 10 minutes into the flight. For American investigators who began an investigation into the causes of the incident, due to the conditions of the incident, it was a “miracle” everything didn't end in a tragedy.
In the configuration used by Alaska Airlines, the additional exit door (which on other companies is used as an emergency exit) is permanently disabled. No one was sitting in the 2 seats next to the door that exploded, leaving a hole in the plane's fuselage.
Second Jennifer Homendyhead of NTSB (US National Transportation Safety Board), there is an identical door on the other side of the plane that remained intact. Investigators are looking for the door that fell and will look at maintenance records, the pressurization system and door components.
Initially, the Council's investigation is focused on the episode involving the Alaska Airlines plane, and does not cover Boeing's entire MAX 9 fleet. However, Jennifer Homendy did not rule out this possibility: “We will go wherever the investigation takes us”.
PROBLEM HISTORY
The incident on the Alaska Airlines flight is just the latest in a series of problems and fatal accidents to affect the Boeing 737 MAX. The model was launched in 2011 by the American manufacturer as a new generation of the successful 737, one of the most used by airlines in the world.
The MAX came with a promise of 20% fuel savings and greater seat availability. Boeing has already launched 4 versions of the model:
- 737 MAX 7 – maximum 172 passengers
- 737 MAX 8 – maximum 210 passengers
- 737 MAX 9 – maximum 220 passengers
- 737 MAX 10 – maximum 230 passengers
The only version of the 737 MAX that is used by a Brazilian company is the 8. Gol Linhas Aéreas It has 40 model aircraft in its fleet. The company has an order for at least 30 MAX 10 jets, which should only be delivered from 2025 according to the contractual schedule.
The 3rd version (MAX 8) collects more security questions. In 2018 and 2019, 2 accidents involving aircraft of this model were recorded, which killed a total of 346 people. They were:
- 1st fall: registered in October 2018, in Indonesia, leaving 189 dead;
- 2nd fall: recorded in March 2019, in Ethiopia, killing 157 people.
Because of this, hundreds of planes of this model around the world were banned from flying for more than 1 and a half years while inspections and investigations were carried out to identify the problems.
In September 2020, the report of a US Congressional investigation concluded that “competitive pressure, design flaws and a culture of cover-up” by Boeing, in addition to FAA regulation “fundamentally flawed” caused the tragedies.
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