With 131 passengers on board, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 headed toward Ketchikan turned around 20 minutes after departure Sunday when lightning struck the aircraft.
Alaska Airlines spokesperson Ann Zaninovich said Flight 69 left the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport at 6:43 p.m. and lightning hit at 7:05 p.m. The Seattle area was experiencing a hail storm when the aircraft was taking off, Zaninovich said.
The plane touched back down at SeaTac at 7:11 p.m. and airline officials found a new plane for passengers two hours later, Zaninovich said.
“The airplanes are designed to dissipate the electrical energy (from lightning). That is taken into account during development of the technology of the plane,” Zaninovich said.
Despite these safety features, Zaninovich said as a precaution for everyone on board, the pilot decided to have the aircraft inspected. The Boeing 737 is out of service during the inspection.
• Contact reporter Paula Ann Solis at 523-2272 or paula.solis@juneauempire.com.
