Amid brewing controversy inside courtrooms concerning the quality of the jets produced, the drama on the tarmac does not appear to stop for Boeing. This time, in an incident/accident from Johannesburg, South Africa, a Safair flight that was taking off from Johannesburg Airport, when it lost its wheels, leading to fumes emerging from the spot.
In this case, the ground personnel is said to have identified the damage and informed the pilots. The plane returned and landed safely. No one was injured in this particular incident. It nevertheless resulted in flight delays.
Many have reacted to the incident, calling for caution and scrutiny of the maintenance staff, along with others responsible for the accident. According to some analysts, this if not averted at the right time, could have resulted in a disaster, leading to the death of many.
This for many observers the is 'Deja vu' moment, as it is a repeat of happenings from March 2024. In this case it was a United Airlines flight, in San Francisco, that witnessed the shocking visuals of a wheel dropping off the flight, while the flight had already taken off.
In another major incident, that kick started the year for Boeing on a bad note, another one of its flight had its doors 'take off' on an an Alaska Airline flight. Given the severity of this incident, the aircraft manufacturer had to ground all the flight of the same model, for an interim period.
This development comes at the back of growing pressure on the company, as it has been embattled by accusations of dearth in quality of their jets. Boeing's infamous 737 MAX, which has been embroiled in myriad controversies, including the Malaysian Airline and Ethiopian Airline disasters, continues to be used. The airline will now perhaps answerable to people and the government, and not just its shareholders, betting on its stocks.
