Mar 15, 2024 - Economy

Missing panel discovered after United's Boeing 737-800 lands

Shauneen Miranda

A United Airlines plane takes off — A United Airlines' Boeing 737-800 aircraft takes off from the Los Angeles International Airport on July 30, 2022, in Los Angeles, California. Photo: AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

A missing panel was discovered after a United Airlines' Boeing 737-800 aircraft landed on Friday, the airline company confirmed to Axios.

The big picture: The incident happened as the Biden administration sought to reassure Americans of the Federal Aviation Administration's "increased safety oversight of Boeing," per CNN.

What they're saying: "This afternoon United flight 433 landed safely at its scheduled destination at Rogue Valley International/Medford Airport," United Airlines said in a statement to Axios.

"After the aircraft was parked at the gate, it was discovered to be missing an external panel," United added.
The flight traveled from San Francisco, California, to Medford, Oregon, on Friday.
United said it would "conduct a thorough examination of the plane and perform all the needed repairs before it returns to service" and "conduct an investigation to better understand how this damage occurred."

Zoom out: The missing panel comes amid a slew of recent investigations and safety questions surrounding Boeing aircrafts, which kickstarted after an Alaska Airlines' Boeing 737 Max 9 plane lost its exit door plug during a flight in January.

Go deeper: Boeing's manufacturing problems hit Southwest, United Airlines

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Missing panel discovered after United's Boeing 737-800 lands

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