Panama ban on all  Boeing 737 MAX9 operations

The Civil Aeronautics Authority (AAC) of Panama reported on Thursday, January 11, that it temporarily prohibited all operations of Boeing 737 MAX9 aircraft in the country, whose flag airline, Copa Airlines, has 29.

The announcement by the aeronautical authority is known one day after the Secretary of Transportation of the United States, Pete Buttigieg, ordered the immobilization of all Boeing 737 Max 9 “until they are safe”, after the accident of a plane of this model of the Alaska Airlines company, which last Friday lost part of the fuselage in mid-flight.

“There is no specific date” for when these devices will return to the skies, Buttigieg said on Wednesday, while this Thursday the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the opening of an investigation into Boeing for the Alaska Airlines incident. , which left no victims.

In its resolution, dated January 8 and signed on January 10, the Panamanian AAC indicates that the FAA “notified the global emergency, after an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 (MAX) plane suffered the detachment of one of the emergency exit doors” on January 5.

It specifies the 21 serial numbers of the Boeing 737-9 (MAX) that cannot operate in the country.

It indicated that Copa “owns 29 aircraft, of which 21 have the ‘Mid cabin door plug’ option”, which has been vetoed for operation in Panama.

The AAC “began inspections on January 7, 2024, to verify the records and inspections that the Copa company is carrying out and is following up on the latest actions requested by the FAA and the manufacturer to comply with the actions that lift the ban”, says the official statement.

Copa has suspended the operations of 21 Boeing 737 MAX9 aircraft since January 6, and last Tuesday said that the measure would continue “while the authorities and the manufacturer define the inspection instructions necessary for the evaluation and return to operation safely and reliability of said aircraft.”

Last Saturday, the United States FAA ordered the “temporary immobilization” of some 171 Boeing 737 MAX9 aircraft operated in that and other countries to subject them to review, after the Alaska Airlines incident.

“The required inspections will last between four and eight hours per aircraft,” the FAA said Saturday.

According to data from the specialized aviation analysis company Cirium cited by the media, there are 215 MAX9 aircraft in service worldwide.