Delays, cancelations at San Diego airport after Alaska Airlines door plug incident grounds some jets

The fallout continues after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners — a decision made after part of an Alaska Airlines aircraft blew out mid-flight from Portland, Oregon to Ontario International Airport on Friday.

Some airlines canceled flights, causing a ripple effect of delays and cancelations, including in San Diego. The majority of the interruptions affected Alaska Airlines flights.

The airline said the cancellations affected about 25,000 customers on Sunday, and "additional significant cancellations" were expected through the first half of the week. United Airlines also suspended service on its Boeing 737 Max 9 planes pending inspections, and was working to accommodate affected passengers.

More than a dozen flights into and out of San Diego were canceled on Sunday and as of Monday morning, there were more than 21 delays and 36 cancelations, according to FlightAware.

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What happened?

Jeff Guzzetti, an aviation analyst with NBC News and former NTSB investigator, says there are a lot of unanswered questions about the Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 incident, during which a panel blew off mid-flight, and that the investigation will be extensive.

“This is a very new airplane. It was just delivered to Alaska Airlines about two months ago off the factory floor from Boeing with less than 150 flights on it,” Guzzetti said. “To me, what that tells me is that there potentially could be a manufacturing issue here.”

Stringent checks will be put in place to test 737 Max 9s.

“The FAA is requiring immediate inspections of certain Boeing 737 Max 9 planes before they can return to flight,” the FAA said in a statement posted online.

Alaska said the incident involved a plug door, a specific panel of the fuselage near the rear of the aircraft, and added that the plane involved in the flight was delivered on Oct. 31, 2023.

Eighteen of Alaska's 737-9 MAX aircraft received in-depth inspections and continued in service Saturday until the airline received the FAA's order. Those aircraft were then pulled from service until details about possible additional maintenance work were confirmed with the FAA.

No serious injuries were reported aboard the Ontario-bound flight, which took off from Portland International Airport, although Alaska Airlines later said several passengers "experienced injuries that required medical attention. All guests have now been medically cleared."

"Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California, experienced an incident this evening soon after departure," the airline said in a statement Friday. "The aircraft landed safely back at Portland International Airport with 171 guests and 6 crew members. The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority, so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation. We are investigating what happened and will share more information as it becomes available."

A video shot by a passenger and shared on TikTok shows a hole in the plane where a window would normally be.

"It was really abrupt. Just got to altitude, and the window/wall just popped off and didn't notice it until the oxygen masks came off," passenger Kyle Rinker told CNN.

Seattle-based Boeing issued the following statement: "Safety is our top priority and we deeply regret the impact this event has had on our customers and their passengers. We agree with and fully support the FAA's decision to require immediate inspections of 737-9 airplanes with the same configuration as the affected airplane. In addition, a Boeing technical team is supporting the NTSB's investigation into (Friday's) event. We will remain in close contact with our regulator and customers."

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci apologized to the passengers aboard the Ontario-bound flight.

"My heart goes out to those who were on this flight. I am so sorry for what you experienced. I am so grateful for the response of our pilots and flight attendants," Minicucci's statement said. "We have teams on the ground in Portland assisting passengers and are working to support guests who are traveling in the days ahead."

The FAA order says it was "prompted by a report of an in-flight departure of a mid cabin door plug, which resulted in a rapid decompression of the airplane. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the potential in-flight loss of a mid cabin door plug, which could result in injury to passengers and crew, the door impacting the airplane, and/or loss of control of the airplane.

"The FAA is issuing this AD because the agency has determined the unsafe condition described previously is likely to exist or develop in other products of the same type design."

So far, the inspections have turned up no reports of further issues.

The National Transportation Safety Board has assumed the lead role in the investigation.

San Diegans react

These checks are continuing to impact flight schedules for some travelers, including those in San Diego.

“It added a whole fiasco of stuff we had to do," Derik Thoma said. "We had to reschedule our flight. That added a layover, which added an extra night we had to stay. It added a lot to our trip already, and we were looking forward to coming home."

Now, safety is top of mind for Thoma and other passengers.

"Last night, we were looking up the plane we were flying on today, seeing if there were any issues with this plane," Thoma said. "It just kind of made us rethink twice about the plane that we were flying on and if are any potential issues with that plane."

The NTSB opened an investigation into what happened.

Guzzetti said NTSB investigations typically take approximately a year to complete, but we could have some preliminary answers sooner.

Click here for the most up-to-date information on departures and arrivals at San Diego International Airport.