This is a developing story.
Flights in and out of Juneau did not appear to be immediately affected Saturday by Alaska Airlines grounding all 65 of its Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft — about a fifth of its total fleet — but other flights in Alaska as well as connecting flights for some local travellers have been cancelled, and some flights aboard such aircraft are scheduled to/from Juneau in the coming days.
The airline grounded its Boeing 737-9 fleet after a window and piece of fuselage on one of the planes blew out in midair shortly after takeoff on Friday night, forcing an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon. The incident occurred at about 16,000 feet, resulting in the loss of cabin pressure, with 171 passengers and six crew members aboard.
Nobody was seriously injured in the incident, according to officials.
The Federal Aviation Administration on Saturday ordered U.S. airlines to stop using some Boeing 737 Max 9 planes until they are inspected. Alaska Airlines, in a statement, said each aircraft will be returned to service after full maintenance and safety inspections, which is expected to be completed within days.
The website FlightAware shows numerous in-state and inter-state flights in Alaska are cancelled Saturday, including some Anchorage-Seattle and Anchorage-Adak routes. As of mid-Saturday the airline had cancelled about 100 total flights, representing about 13% of its schedule.
All Juneau flights this weekend to/from Anchorage and Seattle (including those with stops along the way) are scheduled aboard 737-700, 737-800 and 737-900 aircraft, according to the airline’s website as of 9:30 a.m. Saturday. However, a 7:22 a.m. Tuesday Anchorage-Juneau flight, followed by a 10:03 a.m. Juneau-Seattle flight, appear to be first scheduled locally aboard a Max 9 aircraft. No other local flights that day are aboard a Max 9.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
