Six Alaska Airlines Passengers Sue Boeing For Door Panel Blowout Incident

Topline A group of Alaska Airlines passengers, who were onboard Flight 1282 last week when its door panel blew off after take off, sued aircraft maker Boeing on Thursday alleging the incident caused them mental and physical injuries. A plastic sheet covers an area of the fuselage of the Alaska Airlines N704AL Boeing 737 MAX 9 ...

[+] aircraft outside a hangar at Portland International Airport. Key Facts Six Flight 1282 passengers filed a class action suit in Seattle’s King County Superior Court against Boeing whose 737 Max 9 jet was involved in the incident, the Seattle Times reported first. The filing alleges the incident “physically injured some passengers and emotionally traumatized most if not all aboard,” adding that some passengers' bodies were bruised.

The plaintiffs also claim the rapid change in pressure inside the aircraft caused by the door plug blowout caused ear bleeding and the drop in oxygen levels, loud winds and traumatic stress caused severe headaches. The filing also alleges that the oxygen masks that dropped from the ceiling “did not seem to work” for some passengers and “despite tugging on the tubes, no oxygen flowed.” The suit also claims that the depressurization of the aircraft “ripped the shirt off a boy” who had to leap over a woman next to him and escape towards the front of the plane.

The plaintiffs allege the 737 Max 9’s door plugs were “defective in their construction” as Boeing delivered the planes to Alaska Airlines “without properly securing the plug to the airframe.” Crucial Quote “Passengers were shocked, terrorized and confused, thrust into a waking nightmare, hoping they would live long enough to walk the earth again,” the filing notes.

“Some prayed. Some texted family to express their trepidation. Some gripped and clung to one another. Some adult passengers were crying. Most were earily subdued in their collective helpless state, muted with masks on.”.