Global Courant
The plane is not one of Boeing’s 737 MAX 9 planes that were in the spotlight after the Alaska Airlines explosion.
A domestic flight operated by Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) has returned to its departure airport after a crack was found in the cockpit window of the Boeing 737-800 aircraft in mid-air.
Flight 1182 was headed to Toyama Airport in Japan but returned to Sapporo-New Chitose Airport after the crack was found in the outermost of the four layers of windows surrounding the cockpit, an airline spokesman said on Saturday.
There were no injuries among the 59 passengers and six crew members, the airline said.
“The tear was not anything that affected the control or pressure of the flight,” the ANA spokesperson said.
This is the second incident involving a Boeing aircraft within a week.
However, the ANA plane, also a 737 model plane, is not one of Boeing’s 737 MAX 9 planes that have been in the spotlight since an Alaska Airlines flight suffered a blowout last Saturday that left a gaping hole in the side of the hull was created.
While the Alaska flight also landed safely with all 174 passengers and six crew, flight data showed the plane climbing to 15,000 feet (4,876 meters) before returning to Portland International Airport.
Alaska Airlines has said it is grounding its fleet of 737-9 aircraft.
Aircraft ‘on the ground’
On Friday, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said all 737 MAX 9 aircraft would remain grounded until Boeing provides further data following the near-catastrophic Alaska Airlines incident.
“For the safety of American travelers, the FAA will ground the Boeing 737-9 MAX until extensive inspections and maintenance are performed and inspection data is reviewed,” the FAA said in a statement.
The regulator has also launched a safety investigation into the incident, the first major in-flight safety issue involving a Boeing aircraft since the fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that led to a lengthy grounding of the plane.
“We are working to ensure something like this doesn’t happen again,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said.
“Our only concern is the safety of American travelers and the Boeing 737-9 MAX will not return to the skies until we are completely confident it is safe.”
In a rack On Friday, Boeing welcomed the FAA’s announcement, saying the company would “cooperate fully and transparently.”
“We support all actions that strengthen quality and safety and we take actions throughout our production system.”
Boeing 737 Max jets have been grounded worldwide in the past. In October 2018, they were banned from flying for almost two years after a crash in Indonesia killed 189 people, and five months later in Ethiopia, killing 157 people.
The plane was cleared to fly again after Boeing revamped its automated flight control system that was incorrectly activated in both crashes.
