United plane apparently loses external panel mid-flight after taking off from SFO, officials say
ByTara Campbell and ABC7 Bay Area Digital Staff
Saturday, March 16, 2024 2:22PM
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A United Airlines flight that took off from San Francisco International Airport Friday morning landed in Oregon with a missing external panel, according to officials.
United Flight 433 left San Francisco at 10:20 a.m. and landed at Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport in Medford shortly before noon, according to FlightAware. The airport's director, Amber Judd, said the plane landed safely without incident and the external panel was discovered missing during a post-flight inspection.
The panel found to be missing was on the underside of the aircraft where the wing meets the body and just next to the landing gear, United said.
According to KOBI-TV, crews searched Medford airport property but didn't find any evidence of the missing panel.
The Boeing 737-800 plane had 139 passengers and six crew members onboard.
United says it will "thoroughly examine the plane and perform repairs and conduct an investigation to know how the damage occurred."
Boeing said, also via email, that it would defer comment to United about the carrier's fleet and operations. Its message included a link to information about the airplane that was involved, and it was said to be more than 25 years old.
Incidents have plagued the United Airlines in the past few weeks including several involving planes taking off from SFO.
Most notably United Flight 35 where a tire fell off a Boeing 777 during takeoff. The plane was diverted to LAX where it landed safely.
In January a panel that plugged a space left for an extra emergency door blew off a Max 9 jet in midair just minutes after an Alaska Airlines flight took off from Portland, leaving a gaping hole and forcing pilots to make an emergency landing. There were no serious injuries.
