PETALING JAYA: The blown-off door plug of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 which made an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon, earlier this month was manufactured in Malaysia, said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
According to the Wall Street Journal, NTSB chairman Jennifer Homendy said the plug door was manufactured by Spirit AeroSystems in Malaysia before reaching Boeing’s supplier in Wichita, Kansas.
She said the safety board’s investigation would also delve into the plug door’s production, transport, installation and entry into service – as well as quality checks along the way.
“We have no indication right now of where in the process this occurred. This could be anywhere along the line, and we are not just pinpointing manufacturing,” Homendy was quoted as saying.
Last week, a news portal known as Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) reported how a school teacher in Portland allegedly found the door plug that had torn off from the aircraft in his backyard.
OPB reported that Bob Sauer was intrigued to see the door plug’s serial number and other manufacturing details, such as ‘Made in Malaysia’, apparently handwritten on the door in permanent marker.
MORE TO COME
