The latest in a string of mishaps on Boeing airplanes was discovered Friday on an arriving flight at the Medford International Airport
According to the Oregonian an exterior panel of a Boeing 737 carrying passengers on a United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Medford appears to have torn off mid-flight Friday, marking the latest in a string of recent high-profile mishaps for Boeing planes.
United said the panel was missing from a spot where one of the wings meets the aircraft’s body, near the landing gear. United did not answer questions about what caused the panel to fall off.
The plane is a Boeing 737-800, according to United, though the FAA lists it as a Boeing 737-824. It is not a Boeing 737 Max 9, which is the model of plane that made an emergency landing in Portland after a door plug flew off of the Alaska Airlines aircraft about six minutes into a Jan. 5 flight.
Friday’s Flight 433 landed shortly before noon as scheduled at Rogue Valley International Medford Airport, said airport Director Amber Judd. United said none of the 139 passengers and six crew members were injured.
It was only after the plane was on the ground that the problem was found, Judd said.
United confirmed that the pilots didn’t declare an emergency before landing in Medford because “there was no indication of the damage during the flight.”
