According to The Wall Street Journal, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chairman Jennifer Homendy said the door plug was manufactured by Spirit AeroSystems in Malaysia before reaching Boeing’s supplier in Wichita, Kansas.
She said the safety board’s investigation would also delve into the door plug’s production, transport, installation and entry into service, as well as quality checks along the way.
“We have no indication right now of where in the process this occurred. This could be anywhere along the line, and we are not just pinpointing manufacturing,” Homendy said after a closed-door briefing with members of the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday.
Several senators who attended the briefing said the jets might need to remain grounded until the investigation identifies the root cause.
US Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell said there may be a hearing to examine the Federal Aviation Administration’s oversight of Boeing’s manufacturing.
Meanwhile, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas said there was a need to prevent similar accidents in the future, but expressed uncertainty about who would be held responsible for this particular incident.
Last Friday, transport minister Loke Siew Fook told reporters that he had not received any information about the “Made in Malaysia” inscription on the door plug.
Although unable to comment at the time, Loke said the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) would look into the matter if the airline concerned submitted a formal report.
This comes after a news portal known as Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) reported how Portland school teacher Bob Sauer allegedly found the door plug that had torn off from the aircraft in his backyard.
OPB reported that Sauer was intrigued to find manufacturing details, including the words “Made in Malaysia,” apparently handwritten on the door in permanent marker.
Meanwhile, New Straits Times said Spirit AeroSystems had declined to comment on the inscription and the incident involving Alaska Airlines.
The company said it had been working closely with NTSB’s investigation team.
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