Alaska Airlines says it has canceled all 737-9 MAX Flights through Sunday.
The continuing cancellations come after a door plug blew out of a plane midflight.
“We regret the significant disruption that has been caused for our guests by cancellations due to these aircraft being out of service,” said a spokesperson. “However, the safety of our employees and guests is our highest priority and we will only return these aircraft to service when all findings have been fully resolved and meet all FAA and Alaska’s stringent standards.”
Alaska says the cancellations are so crews can inspect the planes before they return to service.
At Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, dozens of Alaska flights have been canceled each day since the 737 MAX 9 was grounded, including 75 on Friday.
Inspectors will be searching an estimated 110 to 150 planes per day.
“We hope this action provides guests with a little more certainty, and we are working around the clock to re-accommodate impacted guests on other flights,” said a spokesperson.
There is still a three-step process that needs to be finished before the planes can be placed back in operation:
- A final Multi-Operator Message provided by Boeing which covers inspections as approved by the FAA.
- A global Method of Compliance published by the FAA with details for continued operations.
- A list of detailed inspection instructions developed by Alaska Airlines for maintenance technicians to follow per the FAA’s specifications.
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