A United Airlines aircraft experienced an unexpected incident on Friday when it lost an external panel during its flight. The issue was only identified upon the aircraft’s safe landing at Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport in Oregon, according to airport officials. The flight, numbered 433, had taken off from San Francisco at approximately 10:20 a.m. local time and completed its journey in Oregon about 70 minutes later.
The absence of the panel was noticed once the plane had arrived at the gate. This discovery led to a temporary halt in airport operations while a safety check of the runway was carried out, as stated by Amber Judd, the airport director. Despite the missing panel, there were no signs of trouble during the flight, and no emergency was declared. The flight was carrying 139 passengers and a crew of six, as reported by United Airlines.
The airport staff conducted a search for the missing panel within the airport grounds, but their efforts were unsuccessful. Judd stated that after no debris was found on the airfield, normal operations at the airport resumed shortly after.
United Airlines has announced plans for a comprehensive examination of the 25-year-old aircraft. The airline has committed to carrying out all necessary repairs before the plane is returned to service. In addition, an investigation will be conducted to determine how the damage occurred.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will also be investigating the incident, according to a spokesperson. Boeing, however, declined to comment when approached.
This incident is the latest in a series of issues involving Boeing aircraft in recent weeks. Just last week, an American Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport due to a potential mechanical issue with a Boeing aircraft. Earlier this week, a United Airlines flight from Sydney to San Francisco had to turn back mid-flight because of a fuel leak in a Boeing 777-300 plane.
In another incident, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner flying from Sydney to Auckland, New Zealand, experienced a technical problem that resulted in injuries to 50 passengers. Furthermore, a United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Japan had to be diverted to Los Angeles International Airport after a tire on a Boeing 777-20 fell off after takeoff, causing damage to cars in a parking lot on the ground.
In response to these incidents, Boeing has informed its employees that it will be implementing weekly compliance checks for every 737 work area and conducting additional equipment audits to minimize quality issues.