Alaska Airlines cancels all flights on Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft through Jan. 13 after mid-air door blowout

Alaska Airlines has canceled all flights on Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft through Jan. 13 after a midair blowout forced an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon, as startled passengers clutched oxygen masks with a gaping hole in the plane. 

In an online update Wednesday, Alaska Airlines said it continues to wait for documentation from Boeing and the FAA to begin inspection of the airline's 737-9 Max fleet.  

"We regret the significant disruption that has been caused for our guests by cancellations due to these aircraft being out of service. 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," the update shared online said. 

"As of this morning, we have made the decision to cancel all flights on 737-9 Max aircraft through Saturday, Jan. 13, while we conduct inspections and prepare fully for return to service.

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"This equates to between 110 and 150 flights per day. We hope this action provides guests with a little more certainty, and we are working around the clock to reaccommodate impacted guests on other flights." 

This comes after Alaska Airlines already temporarily grounded its fleet of 65 737-9 Max aircraft on Friday after a door plug detached during Flight 1282 from Portland to Ontario, California. The door panel, which covers an extra emergency exit that is only operable on planes with the maximum capacity, blew off as a result just minutes after takeoff at approximately 16,000 feet. 

NTSB INVESTIGATING IF ALASKA AIRLINES DOOR FOUND IN PORTLAND BACKYARD WAS BOLTED PROPERLY

Officials say the explosive depressurization forced the flight crew to make an emergency landing back in Portland. No serious injuries were reported, but the terrifying ordeal was captured on several videos shared by passengers online. Officials say two cellphones, at least one of which was still intact and in airplane mode, were found on the ground, and the door plug, considered a key component, was recovered from a Portland school teacher's backyard. 

"This was a harrowing flight for our guests and crew, and we’re grateful that all individuals have been medically cleared," the airline said. 

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the investigation of the incident with support from Alaska’s safety and technical teams and Boeing representatives. 

During a press conference Monday, NTSB officials said they were investigating whether the door panel was properly bolted. 

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Alaska Airlines reiterated Wednesday that three things must be in place prior to beginning inspections: a final multi-operator message (MOM) provided by Boeing, providing inspection details for the 737-9 Max aircraft as approved by the FAA; an alternate methods of compliance (AMOC) published by the FAA with details for approval of operators’ inspection processes to ensure compliance with their airworthiness directive; and "[d]etailed inspection instructions and processes developed by Alaska Airlines for our maintenance technicians to follow to conduct thorough inspections per the FAA’s specifications." 

The airline notes that as a party to the NTSB investigation, the FAA works to ensure that inspection details address findings that may have surfaced during this process, even if not yet shared with the public.