FAA investigating loss of panel before Boeing 737-800 landed safely in Oregon
Reuters
Sat 16 Mar 2024 10.17 CET
The US Federal Aviation Administration is investigating how a United Airlines Boeing 737-800 lost an external panel before landing safely in Oregon.
United flight 433 landed at Medford airport at about 1.45pm on Friday carrying 139 passengers and six crew after departing from San Francisco, the FAA and airline said.
The FAA said a post-landing airline inspection of the 25-year-old plane revealed a missing panel. United said it would also investigate. It said no emergency had been declared because there was no indication of the damage during flight.
“We’ll conduct a thorough examination of the plane and perform all the needed repairs before it returns to service,” the airline said.
Boeing did not comment, directing questions to United Airlines.
FAA records show the plane was built in late 1998. The Rogue Valley Times posted a photo of the plane with the missing…