Federal investigators launched a new investigation into a Boeing after the engine cowling on a Southwest Airlines plane blew off during flight.
The aircraft, which had departed Denver for Houston at 07:00 local time on Sunday morning, returned to Denver and safely landed. It was carrying 135 passengers with six crew members.
The aircraft involved was a Boeing 737-800 from 2015, a predecessor to the Boeing 737 Max – the latest narrow-body single-aisle passenger jet produced by the aircraft manufacturer, and mired in controversy .
Southwest Airlines, America’s biggest domestic budget airline, accepted responsibility for the accident, saying it was responsible for maintaining the cowling, the structure that covers the engine, and would conduct an investigation of its maintenance procedures.
Boeing spokesmen stated that Southwest was responsible for the incident.
In recent years, the reputation of Seattle-based manufacturer has been damaged by its most popular short-haul aircraft. This culminated in the departure announced last month of its Chief Executive Dave Calhoun.
Since its commercial debut in 2017, the 737 Max has a turbulent history. In 2018 and 2019 the aircraft type was involved in two fatal crashes, killing 346 people. All 737 Max aircraft were grounded until the end of 2020.
This year, a panel protecting a redundant exit from an Air Alaska 737 Max blew away during flight. There were no fatalities, but there were injuries. This aircraft type was grounded again for global fleet inspections.
Manufacturing issues have also caused delays in the 737 Max production schedule. This has had a knock-on impact on airlines like Ryanair. The airline plans to be one of the largest users of the aircraft, but has reduced its profit expectations due to delays in delivery. The 737 Max has a higher capacity and lower fuel consumption than older 737s.