Seattle aviation lawyer, pilot calls Alaska plane incident ‘preventable’
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — After an Alaska Airlines flight had to make an emergency landing in PDX when a portion of the aircraft blew out in mid-air shortly after takeoff Friday night, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered the temporary grounding of certain Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft.
This incident has also prompted aviation experts to weigh in on how it happened, the overall mechanical malfunctions and the potential legal ramifications.
Robert Hedrick, an attorney with Aviation Law Group in Seattle, who is also a licensed pilot and aircraft mechanic, said that federal law classifies this a “preventable accident” and that specific plane only had two months operating in the field – virtually brand new.
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“While this aircraft does have a history of having some problems, I want to think that this door coming off, this panel coming off, is an isolated incident,” Hedrick told KOIN 6 News. “And I think that we can rely on the NTSB and the FAA to fully investigate this and to get this right.”
Since social media video appeared to show that one of the passenger window panels had been blown out, there was some concern that passengers would have been sucked out of the plane due to sudden depressurization. However, Hedrick said we can thank the FAA for their high standards with regard to how secure seats are attached to the floors of the fuselage.
But he also offered up some helpful advice for future passengers.
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“If you see something abnormal, a strange sound, something looks different on an aircraft that concerns you, say something to the flight crew so that it can be looked at.”
However, from a legal standpoint, it is too early to tell as far as lawsuits or injury claims taking place. Hedrick believes the claims will likely stem from physical injuries sustained during the depressurization of the aircraft, which can cause inner ear problems.
“Also emotional distress,” added Hedrick. “Fear of impending doom, thinking you may perish after the accident occurs. Then flying back to Portland with this gaping hole in the side of the airplane must have been horrifying for the passengers.”
The mechanic side of Hedrick still has a big question that could be the key to figuring out what caused the incident: Where did the door go?
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“I hope that there is a large search out to find this door, because it’s going to be needed to determine fully how it failed.”
Despite this, Hedrick believes that flying overall is safe and he is coincidentally traveling next week on an Alaska Airlines flight.
As of noon Saturday, Alaska Airlines said their maintenance team had begun the detailed inspection process of the grounded fleet early that morning. Of the 65 Boeing 737-9 aircrafts, 18 were been cleared to return to service. The airline said the inspections of the remaining planes will be completed in the next few days.
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