By Rebecca Cohen and Jay Blackman —
NBC News
The Department of Justice (DOJ) opened a criminal investigation into the Alaska Airlines flight on a Boeing 737 Max 9 that lost part of the fuselage in the air in January, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.
Citing “documents and people familiar with the matter,” the Journal noted that the DOJ has contacted some passengers who were on the flight to notify them that they are possible victims as part of the criminal investigation, and that the agency has interviewed pilots and attendants of flight 1282.
Both the Justice Department and Boeing said they had no comment on the newspaper's report of a criminal investigation.
“In an event like this, it is normal that the Department of Justice is conducting an investigation,” Alaska Airlines said in a statement, adding that it is “cooperating fully.”
“We do not believe we are the target of the investigation,” the airline added.
On January 5, flight 1282 departed Portland International Airport for Ontario International Airport in San Bernardino County, California.
But he had to return to the takeoff point after part of the plane's fuselage, a type of emergency door, detached into the air.
No one on board was seriously injured and the plane landed safely, but officials warned the situation could have been “much more tragic.”
The incident caused the temporary grounding of some Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft. The planes have now returned to flying.
An investigation led by the National Transportation Safety Board preliminarily found that there were no bolts installed in the door stopper.
According to The Wall Street Journal, authorities are investigating whether Boeing complied with an agreement following the 737 Max 8 crashes in 2018 and 2019 that claimed the lives of 346 people.
The Justice Department blamed Boeing in both cases, and the company in turn blamed two former pilots who determined the amount of training needed to fly the Max planes.
Boeing was ordered to pay $2.5 billion to resolve the investigation in 2021, and the government said it would drop the charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States after three years if Boeing complied with the terms of the agreement.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Boeing could face prosecution on the original charge of defrauding the United States, if in this new case the aeronautical company is found guilty of violating the terms of the 2021 agreement.
The government could also extend a three-year testing agreement that requires Boeing to keep the Justice Department updated on improvements in compliance, the Journal reported.
In the wake of the January incident with Alaska Airlines, several passengers filed a lawsuit against the airline.
And in the days after the explosion, seven passengers filed a class-action lawsuit against Boeing, alleging that the company “delivered the 737 MAX-9 in question to Alaska Airlines, Inc. without properly securing the [door] plug to the structure.” of the aircraft,” and that the bolts and seals used to install the panel were defective.
In February, three passengers filed a $1 billion lawsuit against Alaska Airlines and Boeing, accusing the companies of negligence and alleging they ignored warning signs that could have prevented the fiasco.