The FBI told passengers on an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX plane that lost a door connection panel mid-flight that they may be victims of a crime.
“I am calling you because we have identified you as a potential victim of a crime,” a victim specialist from the federal agency’s Seattle office wrote in messages passengers received this week. “This case is currently under investigation by the FBI.”
The plane was flying at 16,000 feet over Oregon on January 5 when the panel exploded, leaving a large hole in the side. The rapid loss of cabin pressure caused oxygen masks to fall from the ceiling, and the suction as air rushed out of the hatch forced people inside the plane to press hard.
The pilots were able to land safely in Portland, and none of the 171 passengers and six crew members were seriously injured. Investigators say it appears four screws used to help secure the panel were missing after work was done on the plane at Boeing's factory in Renton, Washington.
The US Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into whether the panel explosion violated terms of a 2021 settlement that allowed Boeing to avoid prosecution for allegedly misleading regulators who certified the 737 MAX planes, published reports and government officials said.
The settlement followed two Boeing Max plane crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people.
Mark Lindquist, an attorney representing some passengers on an Alaska Airlines flight in a lawsuit against Boeing, shared the FBI's letter with The Associated Press. The notice gave recipients an email address, phone number, case number and personal identification number so they could share questions and concerns.
“A criminal investigation can be a lengthy undertaking, and for a variety of reasons, we cannot inform you of progress at this time. A victim of a federal crime is entitled to certain services,” the letter stated.
The FBI letter did not name Boeing, which declined to comment Friday. Alaska Airlines said: “We are fully cooperating and do not believe we are a target of the investigation.”
The National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Justice Department are conducting separate investigations into Boeing.
Lindquist said he and his clients welcome the Justice Department's investigation.
“We want accountability, answers and safer planes,” he said. “The Department of Justice and FBI provide significant leverage and resources and I am confident they will help our cause and help the public as well.”
The decision to classify Alaska passengers as potential crime victims is a turnaround for the Justice Department, which said a few years ago that families of passengers killed in Max accidents did not meet the legal definition of crime victims.
However, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the families met the standard. He said that under federal law, the Justice Department should have told them about the secret negotiations with Boeing that resulted in the 2021 settlement.
Robert Clifford, a Chicago attorney who represents some of those families, said his clients are grateful that the Justice Department has a different policy with Alaska passengers.
“They are grateful that this happened,” Clifford said. “To be clear: They are not thanking the Department of Justice for doing the right thing. They were forced to do the right thing.”
