From CNBC:

Passenger oxygen masks hang from the roof of an Alaskan Airlines flight, which lost part of its side wall and window due to depressurization. FAA ordered temporary grounding of Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft following the mid-air incident. 171 passengers and 6 crewmembers were on the affected flight but no serious injuries were reported.

The emergency airworthiness directive from FAA will affect 171 planes worldwide, and Alaska and United Airlines have grounded their entire fleets of Boeing 737 Max 9s. No serious injuries were reported in the incident. NTSB has started its investigation and called for public help in finding the missing door of the plane.

The incident was described as “an explosive decompression at the window exit” by the president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA. Rapid decompression is extremely rare in aviation safety. It is also a reminder to keep your seatbelt fastened when seated on commercial aircraft.

The entire fleet of 79 Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft of United Airlines has been grounded for inspections. FAA estimates the inspections will take between four and eight hours per plane. The 737 Max 9 aircraft were grounded worldwide in 2019 after two fatal crashes.

The section of the fuselage missing was confirmed to correspond to an exit not used by Alaska Airlines or other carriers that don’t have high-density seating configurations, and was plugged. Boeing has pledged full support for FAA’s inspections and NTSB’s investigation.

The incident was a reminder of the importance of keeping seat belts fastened, even when seated, on commercial aircraft. Alaskan Airlines will ground its fleet of Boeing 737 Max 9 planes. As of 7 p.m. ET, Alaska said it cancelled 160 flights, affecting 23,000 customers.



Read more: FAA grounds more than 170 Boeing 737 Max 9s after section of Alaska Airlines plane blows out