PASSENGER PLANE FORCED TO LAND AFTER PLANE PARTS FALL OFF

An outer section, including a window, that fell off soon after take-off, forced an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 to make an emergency landing.

All 171 passengers and the crew members were unharmed when the flight landed safely in Portland, Oregon.

The plane was on its way to California when, according to one of the passengers “there was a really loud bang towards the left rear of the plane and a woosh noise”. This was followed by all the air masks dropping inside the cabin.

Another passenger, Diego Murillo, said “There was a kid in that row who had his shirt sucked off him and out of the plane and his mother was holding onto him to make sure he didn’t go with it”. According to Murillo, the gap was “as wide as a refrigerator”.

Elizabeth Lee, another passenger, said “Part of the plane was missing and the wind was just extremely loud, but everyone was in their seats and had their belt on”.

A fellow passenger described the flight as a “trip from hell”.

Boeing commented on the matter saying a “technical team stands ready to support the investigation”.

Image credit: Sky News