Alaska Airlines cancels more than 200 flights

Alaska Airlines said it had canceled 170 flights on Sunday and a further 60 on Monday, after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered the grounding of 171 Boeing 737 MAX 9 airplanes to run inspections.

The airline said cancellations would continue through the first half of the week. The Sunday cancellations affected nearly 25,000 guests, added the Seattle-based carrier, which has 65 737 MAX 9 aircraft in its fleet.

The FAA on Saturday ordered the temporary grounding of 171 Boeing jets installed with the same panel after an eight-week-old Alaska Airlines jet was forced to make an emergency landing with a gap in the fuselage.

The door plug tore off the left side of the jet following takeoff from Portland, Oregon, en route to Ontario, California, forcing pilots to turn back and land safely with all 171 passengers and six crew on board.

"They will remain grounded until the FAA is satisfied that they are safe," the agency said of the affected 737 MAX 9 jets in a statement on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Alaska Airlines pilots reported pressurisation warning lights on three earlier flights of the new Boeing 737 MAX 9 jet that made the emergency landing Friday.

National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy said the auto pressurisation fail light illuminated on December 7, January 3 and January 4 but it is not clear if there is any connection between those incidents and the rapid depressurisation incident.

Alaska made a decision after the warning lights to restrict the flight from flying to Hawaii so that it could return quickly to an airport if needed, Homendy said.