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American Airlines faced a peculiar challenge late last year involving its Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. After departing from Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the aircraft suffered gunfire damage, leading to its temporary grounding. Similar incidents affected other airlines like JetBlue and Spirit Airlines, which reported damage to their planes on the same day due to bullets.
“On Monday, November 11th, American Airlines flight 189 from Toussaint Louverture International Airport (PAP) to Miami International Airport (MIA) landed safely and uneventfully in Miami. Out of an abundance of caution, a post-flight inspection was completed, indicating the exterior of the aircraft had been impacted by a bullet. We are working closely with all relevant authorities to investigate this incident,” stated American Airlines.
The airline took the Boeing 737 MAX 8 out of service for five days to repair the damage. The aircraft resumed operations after a repair process that removed the damaged section of the fuselage and replaced it with new material. The repair process included consulting the structural repair manual, removing damaged metal, and inserting replacement plates.
