NTSB Determines Probable Cause of Door Plug Accident

Agency cites Boeing for inadequate training, guidance, and oversight in January 2024 Alaska Airlines incident.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, June 25, 2025 at 10:14 AM ET

Verified

Edited By: Steve Spears

Mid-exit door (MED) plug from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. [Credit: NTSB]

Key Takeaways:

The NTSB concluded that the Alaska Airlines door plug separated due to Boeing's failure to provide adequate training, guidance, and oversight, which led to manufacturing personnel not properly reinstalling four critical bolts.
The FAA was also implicated for its ineffective oversight of Boeing's documented history of recordkeeping and systemic nonconformance issues.
The incident highlighted a broader lack of safety and quality control culture at Boeing, prompting increased scrutiny from the NTSB, FAA, and customers, alongside numerous recommendations for improving manufacturing processes and oversight, as well as enhancing flight safety procedures.

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Inadequate training, guidance, and oversight on the part of the Boeing Company are to blame for the loss of the door plug from an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 in January 2024.

On Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) held a lengthy hearing to discuss the investigation into the event. The FAA was also cited for ineffective oversight of Boeing’s known recordkeeping issues.