United Airlines finds safety issues at Boeing

The airline United Airlines found loose screws on several Boeing 737 MAX 9 model aircraft this Monday (8.Jan.2024). The plane is the same one used on the North American company's flight Alaska Airlineson Friday (January 5, 2024), which ejected a door after a section of the plane exploded.

In a statement, United informed that the problems encountered are related to the installation of panels and that they will be rectified by the technical team.

To the Power360, the company said it will review its 79 Boeing 737 MAX 9 this Monday (8.Jan) and Tuesday (9.Jan.2024) and will return the planes in the following days. Due to the inspection, 200 company flights were canceled.

“Since we began preliminary inspections on Saturday, we have found cases that appear to be related to installation issues in the door plug – for example, screws that needed additional tightening. These findings will be corrected by our Technical Operations team to safely return the aircraft to service.”the company stated.

The safety inspection was initiated after the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration), the United States air transport regulatory agency, requested an investigation into aircraft of the same model as the Alaska Airlines accident.

Boeing shares fell 8% on the New York Stock Exchange this Monday (8 January), at US$ 229 per share. The aircraft manufacturer lost US$12.1 billion in market value in just 1 day with investors' strong negative reaction to the crisis involving the safety of the company's aircraft.

Read the full statement:

“We are working to return our Boeing 737 MAX 9s to service in the coming days. As of Monday, service on this aircraft remains suspended and we have canceled 200 MAX 9 flights. We expect significant cancellations on Tuesday as well. We were able to operate some planned flights by switching to other aircraft types, avoiding around 30 cancellations on Mondays and Tuesdays;

“Since we began preliminary inspections on Saturday, we have found cases that appear to be related to installation issues on the door plug – for example, screws that needed additional tightening. These findings will be corrected by our technical operations team to safely return the aircraft to service.”