Aviation News International – SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) – A United Airlines flight that took off from San Francisco International Airport Friday morning landed in Oregon with a missing external panel, according to officials.
United Flight 433 left San Francisco at 10:20 a.m. and landed at Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport in Medford shortly before noon, according to FlightAware. The airport’s director, Amber Judd, said the plane landed safely without incident and the external panel was discovered missing during a post-flight inspection.
The airport paused operations to check the runway and airfield for debris, Judd said, and none was found.
Judd said she believed the United ground crew or pilots doing a routine inspection before the next flight were the ones who noticed the missing panel.
The Boeing 737-800 plane had 139 passengers and six crew members onboard.
United says it will “thoroughly examine the plane and perform repairs and conduct an investigation to know how the damage occurred.”
The Federal Aviation Administration also said it would investigate.
The missing panel was on the underside of the aircraft where the wing meets the body and just next to the landing gear, United said.
The plane made its first flight in April 1998 and was delivered to Continental Airlines in December of that year, according to the FAA. United Airlines has operated it since Nov. 30, 2011. It is a 737-824, part of the 737-800 series that was a precursor to the Max.
Boeing said, also via email, that it would defer comment to United about the carrier’s fleet and operations.
Incidents have plagued United Airlines in the past few weeks including several involving planes taking off from SFO.
Most notably United Flight 35 where a tire fell off a Boeing 777 during takeoff. The plane was diverted to LAX where it landed safely.
Source: https://abc7news.com/united-flight-missing-panel-sfo-medford-oregon/14529741/