National Transportation Safety Board
- The FAA has cleared a path for grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 jets to resume flying.
- The aircraft was grounded earlier this month after a door plug flew off one of the planes mid-flight.
- The FAA also said it was halting further expansion production by Boeing of the aircraft.
More than a hundred Boeing 737 Max 9 jets that were grounded following a near-disaster onboard a recent Alaska Airlines flight have been cleared to resume flying following an inspection, US air safety regulators said Wednesday.
The Federal Aviation Authority announced new steps to ensure the aircraft model is safe after a door plug flew off one of the models mid-flight earlier this month, paving the way for the planes to take to the skies once more.
On a January 5 Alaska Airlines flight, a chunk of the plane's fuselage ripped away at around 16,000 feet.
The FAA subsequently grounded all models of the Boeing 737 Max 9 after the incident, leading to flight cancellations and frustration among airline executives.
There are about 171 such jets in the world, most of them operating in the US.
But while increased inspection and maintenance processes now required to operate the aircraft model could put the planes back in rotation soon, Boeing's troubles are far from over.
"Let me be clear: This won't be back to business as usual for Boeing," FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said in a Wednesday statement.
The agency has halted all further expansion production on Boeing 737 Max 9s until it is "satisfied" that the aircraft's quality control issues are resolved.
"We will continue to cooperate fully and transparently with the FAA and follow their direction as we take action to strengthen safety and quality at Boeing," a Boeing spokesperson told Business Insider in an emailed statement. "We will also work closely with our airline customers as they complete the required inspection procedures to safely return their 737-9 airplanes to service."
The move is the latest blow to Boeing amid a period of heightened scrutiny of the mega manufacturer.
"The quality assurance issues we have seen are unacceptable," Whitaker said Wednesday. "That is why we will have more boots on the ground closely scrutinizing and monitoring production and manufacturing activities."
In-house safety inspections of Alaska Airlines's fleet of Boeing 737 Max 9s following the initial incident revealed that there were "many" loose bolts found on the jets.
"We have let down our airline customers and are deeply sorry for the significant disruption to them, their employees and their passengers," Boeing CEO and president Stan Deal said in a Tuesday press release.
"We are taking action on a comprehensive plan to bring these airplanes safely back to service and to improve our quality and delivery performance," he added. "We will follow the lead of the FAA and support our customers every step of the way."
The FAA's new safety guidelines for the 737 Max 9s come after a review of data stemming from 40 inspections of the grounded planes, the agency said.
Each inspection will require the plane's bolts, guide tracks, and fittings be checked; a detailed visual inspection of the left and right mid-cabin exit door plugs; the retorquing of fasteners; and correcting any damage or abnormalities, the agency said.
A National Transportation Safety Board investigation into the Alaska disaster is ongoing.