Door rips off Alaska Airlines passenger jet

ALASKA AIRLINES AIRBUS A321-253N N925VA (MSN 7999)

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 MAX travelling from Portland (PDX/KPDX) to Ontario (ONT/KONT) made an emergency landing back in Oregon on Friday afternoon (local) after one of its doors blew open mid-air after takeoff. It was not immediately clear if anyone was injured in the incident, and the airline said that the matter is under investigation.

Videos on social media showed that the mid-cabin door completely disappeared, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the airplane. "The aircraft landed safely back at Portland International Airport with 174 guests and 6 crew members," said the airlines in a statement.

Reports suggested that a window was missing along with a major chunk of the plane's fuselage.  The flight departed from runway 28L at 16.06 and climbed to 16,300 feet before it experienced severe depressurisation and caused the ejection of a large window section and an unoccupied seat.

The aircraft landed safely back on runway 28L twenty minutes later at 16.26.

Alaska Airlines issued the below statement:
"Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, experienced an incident this evening soon after departure. The aircraft landed safely back at Portland International Airport with 171 guests and 6 crew members... We are investigating what happened and will share more information as it becomes available," said Alaska Airlines.

Boeing said in a statement that it was looking into the emergency landing.

“We are aware of the incident involving Alaska Airlines Flight 1282," the company said in a statement. "We are working to gather more information and are in contact with our airline customer. A Boeing technical team stands ready to support the investigation.”

Social media posts showed a window and a portion of a side wall missing on the airplane, and oxygen masks deployed. Passengers narrated their harrowing experience on the flight, calling it a nightmare. A 22-year-old passenger told reporters, “I open up my eyes and the first thing I see is the oxygen mask right in front of me. And I look to the left and the wall on the side of the plane is gone. The first thing I thought was, ‘I’m going to die.'"

An air safety expert, Anthony Brickhouse, said, "I can't imagine what these passengers experienced. 

It would have been loud. The wind would be rushing through that cabin. It was probably a pretty violent situation and definitely a scary situation."

Aircraft Information

Airline: Alaska Airlines

Code: AS/ASA

Flight Number: AS1282

Aircraft: Boeing 737 Max 9

Registration: N704AL

Serial Number: 67501

Engines: 2 x CFMI LEAP-1B

First Flew: 20/10/2023

Age: 3 Months