Muscat: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) monitored an incident involving a foreign airline's Boeing Max 737-9 type aircraft during a flight in the United States.
CAA has taken precautionary measures, including coordinating with Boeing, to verify the connection between the incident and this aircraft type, which is not used by Omani operators.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channels. Click here
Meanwhile, United and Alaska Airlines both reported on Monday that loose hardware had been discovered on some of their 1planes during preliminary inspections after a dramatic mid-flight incident last week.
The disclosures come as US federal transportation inspectors continued to probe what caused a so-called door plug component to blow out last Friday on an Alaska Airlines passenger plane, forcing it to make an emergency landing.
United said Monday it had "found instances that appear to relate to installation issues in the door plug -- for example, bolts that needed additional tightening."
Hours later, Alaska Airlines announced its staff had found that "loose hardware was visible on some aircraft."
Boeing shares tumbled Monday as investors began to assess the financial implications of the incident, while US aviation authorities provided airlines with protocols to check planes with similar configurations to the 737-9 737 aircraft involved in Friday's incident.
Hundreds of flights have been canceled due to the grounding of a fraction of the Max fleet.
"As operators conduct the required inspections, we are staying in close contact with them and will help address any findings," Boeing said late Monday.
"We are committed to ensuring every Boeing airplane meets design specifications and the highest safety and quality standards. We regret the impact this has had on our customers and their passengers."
Aviation analysts said the issue appeared to be a quality control problem rather than a design issue akin to the problem with a flawed flight handling system involved in two fatal Max crashes in 2018 and 2019.
But Boeing has struggled with supply chain and quality control problems since the Max returned to service, limiting its output and hitting its bottom line.
In December, Boeing urged airlines to undertake additional inspections to check for loose hardware on plane rudder control systems after an international operator discovered a bolt with a missing nut while performing routine maintenance.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
