Alaska Airlines plane's terrifying mid‑flight ordeal: Parts fall off and phones survive 16k feet plunge
The incident unfolded on Friday (5 January), about 35 minutes after the Alaska Airlines plane took off, en route from Portland International Airport to Ontario, California. US media outlets reported that the flight was carrying 171 passengers and six crew members.
1:05 PM EST, January 8, 2024
Video footage that appeared on social media showed a hole in the side of the plane, next to passengers utilizing oxygen masks. One passenger, Evan Smith, told KATU-TV about the wind pulling off a boy's t-shirt onboard the Boeing aircraft.
He explained: "There was a really loud bang towards the left rear of the plane and a woosh noise - and all the air masks dropped."
The aircraft was approximately 16,000 feet high when a section of the hull, designed for potential additional door installation, became detached. On Sunday, Jennifer Homendy, the chair of the NTSB, confirmed that even this piece had been found. This was nestled within dense underbrush in Portland, Oregon.
Interestingly, two phones were also discovered. An iPhone from flight 1282 of Alaska Airlines survived a fall from a height of 16,000 feet.
The phone was in airplane mode and showed an open message about baggage claim for flight ASA1282.
"Found an iPhone on the side of the road... Still in airplane mode with half a battery and open to a baggage claim for #AlaskaAirlines ASA1282 Survived a 16,000 foot drop perfectly in tact!" - an internet user noted.
Airlines ground their fleets
In the wake of this alarming incident, Alaska Airlines announced it implemented a "precautionary measure, temporarily grounding our fleet of 65 Boeing Max-9 planes." Other American airlines followed suit, with United Airlines suspending all of their 737 MAX 9 aircraft.
