The Boeing 737-300 carrying 78 passengers suffered serious damage when a failed takeoff attempt sent it careening off the tarmac and into the bush at Blaise Diagne airport near the capital city Dakar.

A clip taken by one horrified traveller showed a female customer sprinting away from the scene of the wreckage as flames poured from the 737’s left engine, lighting up the night sky.

More images later showed the plane, operated by Senegalese carrier Transair, nestled in the dirt with a gaping hole in the left engine that was covered in firefighting foam in the aftermath of the blaze.

Emergency crews rushed to evacuate the passengers, eleven of whom were injured, four seriously so – though no deaths have been reported – as flights from the airport were suspended.

Authorities are now trying to establish the cause of the incident that comes just one day after another Boeing aircraft – a 767 cargo plane operated by American postal service FedEx – performed an emergency landing in Turkey after its landing gear failed.

The crashes will only compound woes for the company which is already facing intense scrutiny amid a string of mishaps and controversy over safety concerns – not to mention the deaths of two whistleblowers just two months apart.

That flight took off from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport early yesterday and was headed for Istanbul when the pilot realised the landing gear was malfunctioning.

Unsettling footage showed the moment the plane attempted an emergency landing, touching down into the runway and scraping its nose along the concrete.

Sparks flew from the plane’s tattered fuselage as it crunched along the tarmac with smoke billowing from behind.

Fortunately, firefighters and rescue teams were already waiting at the scene, with Turkey’s transport ministry having dispatched emergency teams as soon as it learned that the pilot’s landing gear was not working.

The first responders flocked to surround the plane as it ground to a halt and immediately doused it with firefighting foam to prevent any potential fire from sparking.

No one was injured in today’s incident and the crew safely evacuated the aircraft, said Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Turkey’s transportation and infrastructure minister.

The runway where the plane landed was closed off while the aircraft was being removed, he said.

‘IGA Istanbul Airport Rescue and ARFF continues its efforts to move the aircraft to a safe area and open the runway to flight traffic. Flight traffic and operations continue smoothly on all other runways, including the spare runways,’ a statement read.

Boeing is already under the microscope amid mounting controversy over safety problems, suspected quality control issues and the deaths of whistleblowers.

The US’ Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it has opened an investigation into the company after workers at a South Carolina plant falsified inspection records on certain 787 planes.

In an email to Boeing’s South Carolina employees on April 29, Scott Stocker, who leads the 787 program, said a worker observed an ‘irregularity’ in a required test of the wing-to-body join and reported it to his manager.

‘After receiving the report, we quickly reviewed the matter and learned that several people had been violating Company policies by not performing a required test, but recording the work as having been completed,’ Stocker wrote.

No planes have been taken out of service, but having to perform the test out of order on planes will slow the delivery of jets still being built at the final assembly plant in North Charleston, South Carolina.

Boeing must also create a plan to address planes that are already flying, the FAA said.

‘The FAA is investigating whether Boeing completed the inspections and whether company employees may have falsified aircraft records,’ a statement read.

Read the full originally published story at dailymail.co.uk

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A picture of the plane in a factory in Renton, Washington, revealed the lack of bolts, the NTSB said.

“Photo documentation obtained from Boeing shows evidence of the left-hand MED plug closed with no retention hardware (bolts) in the three visible locations,” the report said, using an acronym for the middle exit door.

However, it was not clear at what stage in the manufacturing process the plane was in when the photo was taken.

The faulty plug was manufactured by Spirit AeroSystems Malaysia on March 24, 2023, and was received at Spirit AeroSystems Wichita on May 10, 2023, the report said. The plug was then installed and rigged on the Spirit AeroSystems Fuselage Line 8789 before it was shipped to Boeing on Aug. 20, 2023. The fuselage arrived at Boeing’s Renton facility on Aug. 31, 2023, according to the report.

In a statement Tuesday, Boeing said it appreciates the NTSB’s work and will review the findings “expeditiously” while continuing to cooperate with investigations by the NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration.

“Whatever final conclusions are reached, Boeing is accountable for what happened,” Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun said in the statement. “An event like this must not happen on an airplane that leaves our factory. We simply must do better for our customers and their passengers. We are implementing a comprehensive plan to strengthen quality and the confidence of our stakeholders. It will take significant, demonstrated action and transparency at every turn — and that is where we are squarely focused.”

The flight, carrying 177 people, left Portland, Oregon, on Jan. 5 bound for Ontario International Airport in San Bernardino County, California, when the door plug blew off, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the aircraft. Many passengers described hearing a “loud bang” shortly after takeoff. A photo from one passenger showed a panel missing from the side of the fuselage. The plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon.

The FAA grounded all 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 airplanes operating in the U.S. amid the NTSB’s investigation. The FAA also said it was increasing its oversight of Boeing production and manufacturing.

In his testimony to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Aviation Subcommittee on Tuesday, FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker offered more details on the increased scrutiny now underway at Boeing.

“We’re proposing to expand the oversight approach to include both audits and inspection which is why we’re moving inspectors into the facilities,” Whitaker said. “We know what we need to do next, which is to have more on-the-ground presence to verify what’s going on.”

Read the full story originally published on nbcnews

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It is the first revenue flight for this model since the Federal Aviation Administration grounded the Boeing jets three weeks ago following a door plug blowout on Alaska Airlines flight 1282.

Alaska Airlines COO Constance von Muehlen took the flight and sat in the seat next to the door plug, telling CNN she has full confidence in the aircraft.

Sarah Edgbert was not aware that the flight she was taking was on a 737 Max 9 plane until she got to her gate and saw news crews.

She said she felt anxious at first. “But then realizing it’s probably the safest plane out there right now, it’s been through lots of tests since then,” Edgbert said.

“I am not going to stop doing what I do,” Kent, who did not want to give his last name, said. “I am not going to change my habits for it, and I am going to be hoping that something bad doesn’t happen.”

Doug Bowman didn’t know that he’d be boarding a Max 9 plane until he was informed by CNN, but said he had “important things, engagements to get back to” in San Diego.

The flight left with a delay because the plane itself — tail number N929AK — was late arriving in Seattle. It is expected to land in San Diego around 9pm ET.

Alaska and United Airlines — the two US carriers operating this version of Boeing’s latest 737 generation — have been canceling hundreds of flights daily since the Max 9 was grounded. The airlines provided data that helped the FAA and Boeing refine inspection procedures to ensure the planes are safe to fly. The carriers started performing the actual inspections soon after the FAA issued instructions late Wednesday.

The first flight is one of three flights Alaska Airlines has scheduled on Max 9 jets for Friday. United Airlines said its first Max 9 flight is scheduled for Sunday — but that cleared Max 9s are available in the meantime as spares if another plane is unavailable.

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said Thursday he is not concerned with passengers avoiding the Max 9.

“Our anticipation is when our Max 9 gets back up that we will fill our airplanes,” he said.

News Source: cnn.com

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