Following Latam Airline Incident, Boeing Instructs Pilots to check their Seats

Boeing has advised airlines operating 787 Dreamliners to have pilots inspect their seats while an investigation into an incident on a Latam flight remains ongoing.

Following an unfortunate incident this week, where 50 individuals sustained injuries, a 787 aircraft experienced a sudden drop during a Latam Airlines flight.

According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, there was an incident involving a flight attendant accidentally activating a switch on the pilot’s seat. This unexpected action caused the pilot to be pushed into the controls, resulting in the plane’s nose being forced downwards.

Latam is cooperating with investigations.

Amidst the incident, individuals were forcefully propelled towards the plane’s ceiling as it made its journey from Australia to New Zealand.

Passenger Brian Jokat reported that several individuals sustained head injuries during the incident.

In an interview with the BBC, Mr Jokat disclosed that individuals had struck the ceiling with such intensity that “certain roof panels were damaged.”

The individual beside him, he mentioned, seemed to be “stuck to the ceiling”.

“I briefly considered that this might be the moment,” he remarked.

Emergency services later reported that an individual was in a critical state.

Boeing provided an update on the ongoing investigation of Flight LA800, stating that they are deferring to the investigation authorities for any potential findings.

“As a safety measure, we have recently reached out to 787 operators to provide a reminder about a service bulletin that was issued in 2017. This bulletin contains important instructions for inspecting and maintaining switches on flight deck seats.”

Operators are advised to conduct an inspection of the switches during the next maintenance opportunity.

Latam Airlines stated that it is collaborating with the authorities to assist with the ongoing investigation.