United Airlines Boeing 737: Flight from San Francisco loses external panel mid-air before landing in Oregon

A United Airlines Boeing plane was grounded on Friday (15 March) after it was found to be missing a panel when the aircraft touched down in Medford Airport in Oregon. No injuries were reported on the flight from San Francisco.

According to the Daily Mail, United Airlines revealed that the wing-to-body fairing ripped off, a part located on the underside of the aircraft where the wing meets the aircraft body. The panel sits just adjacent to where the landing gear deploys, and serves as a protective shell between the wing and the fuselage.

According to the online flight tracker FlightAware, the flight took off from San Francisco International at 10:20am PDT, and landed in Oregon at 11:36am. The same aircraft, tail number N26226, was supposed to embark on a flight from Medford to Denver later in the day - but the trip was postponed due to the panel blowout. 

Jackson County Airport Director Amber Judd said the Boeing 737-824 plane was not a new aircraft, unlike the incidents seen in recent months. An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-MAX 9 lost a door mid-flight in January which prompted a huge review into the safety of Boeing aircraft. 

In a statement United Airlines said: “This afternoon United flight 433 landed safely at its scheduled destination at Rogue Valley International/Medford Airport. After the aircraft was parked at the gate, it was discovered to be missing an external panel. 

“We’ll conduct a thorough examination of the plane and perform all the needed repairs before it returns to service. We'll also conduct an investigation to better understand how this damage occurred.”

The incident comes just three days after another incident, where a United Airlines Boeing plane was forced to land due to hydraulic fluid spewing from its landing gear area. It also comes less than a week after a former quality manager at Boeing was found dead in the US while he was in the middle of blowing the whistle against the firm over safety issues.