Latin American carriers Copa Airlines and Aeromexico have together grounded about 40 of their Boeing 737 Max 9s after an Alaska Airlines aircraft of the same type suffered a depressurisation incident.
On 6 January, the US Federal Aviation Administration said it was temporarily grounding “certain” aircraft of the type pending inspections..
“In accordance with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Aeromexico will ground its B737 Max 9 aircraft until they undergo inspection,” the Mexico City-headquartered airline said on 6 January. “The inspection of our Max 9 fleet will be completed as soon as possible to continue with scheduled operations, and we will continue to work closely with Boeing and the competent authorities.”
According to Cirium fleets data, Aeromexico has 52 737 Max aircraft in service, of which 19 are the dash 9 type. It also operates 34 older-generation 737-800s.
Copa, meantime, says it has ”temporarily suspended” the operation of 21 Max 9s. Cirium data show that the carrier has 29 of the type in service.
”Copa has initiated the necessary technical inspections and expects to return these aircraft safely and reliably to the flight schedule within the next 24 hours,” the Panama City-based carrier said on 6 January. ”The airline’s team is working to minimise the impact on our passengers, although some delays and cancellations are expected due to this situation beyond the airline’s control.”
The FAA on 6 January issued an emergency airworthiness directive requiring immediate inspections of 737 Max 9s equipped with emergency exit door “plugs”. The order requires airlines to immediately ground Max 9s that have yet to be inspected, though how many aircraft must be pulled from service remains unclear.
The move responds to the 5 January in-flight blow out of a cabin door plug in an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9. That failure caused a rapid depressurisation, leaving a hole in the side of the jet. The pilots landed the aircraft safely and no passengers nor crew members were seriously injured, according to US officials.
The FAA says its order applies to 171 aircraft globally – all 737 Max 9s “with a mid-cabin door plug installed”.
“Further flight is prohibited until the airplane is inspected and all applicable corrective actions have been performed,” the FAA adds.
The entire global fleet of 737 Max 9s stands at 215 aircraft, according to Cirium fleets data. Not all the jets have door plugs.
European safety regulators have yet to follow the FAA in taking action against the Boeing 737 Max 9 following the incident. However, relatively few Max 9s operate in Europe. Carriers that operate the type include Turkish Airlines, which configures its jets with 169 seats, and Icelandair which has Max 9s with 178 seats.
