An Alaska Airlines plane made an emergency landing on Friday evening (local time) in Portland, in the northwest US, after a window and part of the fuselage fell out, the company said.
The Boeing 737 Max 9 returned to Portland, Oregon, 35 minutes into its flight to California after its exterior, including a window, fell.
Flight data shows the plane climbed to an altitude of 4,876 meters before returning to Portland International Airport, the US news agency AP reported.
The airline said the plane landed safely with 174 passengers and six crew members.
The hole caused the cabin to depressurize, but the company did not provide information about whether anyone was injured or a possible cause.
Hours later, Alaska Airlines said it had decided to temporarily ground all of its 65 737 Max 9 aircraft to conduct inspections.
“Following what happened this evening with Flight 1282, we have decided to take precautionary measures and temporarily ground our fleet of 65 Boeing 737-9 aircraft,” Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci said in a statement.
Each of the planes will be returned to service after extensive maintenance and safety checks, which Minicucci said the airline expects to complete within days.
Boeing said it was “working to gather more information” about the incident, British BBC television reported.
“Boeing’s technical team stands ready to support the investigation,” the North American manufacturer said.
The pilot told Portland air traffic controllers that the plane had an emergency, had depressurized and needed to return to the airport, according to a recording by LiveATC.net cited by the AP.
A passenger sent KATU-TV in Portland a photo of a hole in the side of the plane, next to the passenger seats.
Video provided to the station showed people wearing oxygen masks and passengers cheering as the plane landed.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced they would investigate the incident.
The Boeing 737 Max 9 involved rolled off the production line and received certification just two months ago, according to online FAA records.
The plane has made 145 flights since entering commercial service on November 11, according to another tracking service, FlightRadar24.
The flight to Portland was the plane’s third of the day.