An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 takes off from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in Los Angeles, California on March 6, 2024.
Daniel Slim | AFP | Getty Images
The Department of Justice has opened a criminal investigation into the matter. alaska airlines The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday that a door panel was blown off into the air two months ago.
Investigators contacted passengers, pilots and flight attendants on Flight 1282, which was headed from Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California, on January 5, the newspaper reported, citing documents and people familiar with the matter. The crew makes an emergency landing.
The investigation will help the Justice Department consider whether Boeing complied with previous settlements of federal investigations into two 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019, the magazine said.
“It is normal for the Department of Justice to conduct an investigation in cases like this,” an Alaska Airlines spokesperson said. “We are cooperating fully and do not believe we will be a target of the investigation.”
The Justice Department declined to comment. Boeing did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Alaska Airlines’ Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft have resumed regular service after being grounded for inspection. Alaska Airlines and United Airlines, two U.S. airlines that operate the Max 9, canceled thousands of flights in January following the incident.
Three passengers are suing Boeing and Alaska Airlines for $1 billion in damages, alleging they were negligent in ignoring warning signs.
Alaska Airlines previously estimated that the weeks-long grounding of Boeing 737 Max 9s would cost the airline $150 million.
— Read the original article on WSJ here.
—CNBC’s Rebecca Picciotto contributed reporting.
