Federal investigators located the door plug that blew out from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282‚ which made an emergency landing in Portland‚ Oregon‚ Friday evening. Alaska Airlines Flight 1282‚ traveling from Portland‚ Oregon‚ to Ontario‚ California‚ faced severe depressurization‚ causing the ejection of a large window section and an unoccupied seat. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found the ejected door plug in a wooded backyard. “NTSB has recovered the door plug from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 MAX. NTSB investigators are currently examining the door plug and will send it to the NTSB Materials Laboratory in Washington‚ DC for further examination‚” NTSB said. NTSB has recovered the door plug from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 MAX. NTSB investigators are currently examining the door plug and will send it to the NTSB Materials Laboratory in Washington‚ DC for further examination. pic.twitter.com/fqeemNeBPW — NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) January 8‚ 2024 A man named “Bob” found the door plug. “I’m excited to announce that we found the door plug‚” NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said. “Bob is a school teacher in Portland‚ so thank you very much Bob‚ bless you‚” Homendy commented. BREAKING NEWS: NTSB says the door plug from Alaska Airlines flight 1282 has been located by a man named "Bob."https://t.co/60nMmYh3pp — KATU News (@KATUNews) January 8‚ 2024 KOIN 6 reports: At least two cell phones from the plane have also been recovered after federal investigators announced on Saturday evening the search radius was in the Cedar Hills area between Barnes Road and 217. NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy told the public on Sunday evening the aircraft’s auto pressurization warning system went off three times within the last month‚ including one day before the mid-air incident on Flight 1282‚ and that Alaska Airlines had decided to restrict the aircraft from long journeys over water in the event the warning light reappeared so the aircraft could quickly return to an airport. Federal Aviation Administration officials say the door plug is key to the investigation into what went wrong. John Nance‚ a broadcast aviation analyst and veteran airline captain‚ told KOIN 6 News it will be important for investigators to uncover details about the installation process. “One of the questions we’re gonna have here is if it’s found the door was not properly installed‚ the plug‚ then the question is exactly when did that happen and why wasn’t it caught and at what stage?” Nance said. Flight 1282 took off from Portland International Airport just before 4:30 p.m. on Friday‚ Jan. 5‚ but while it was at 16‚000 feet during its initial takeoff‚ the door plug blew out of the aircraft. The aircraft managed to safely make its emergency return landing to PDX around 5:30 p.m. PHOTO: iPhone that fell from Alaska Airlines flight 1282 after window blew survived a 16‚000 feet drop pic.twitter.com/EhfKwOSi5p — Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) January 8‚ 2024 However‚ investigators must move forward without audio from the flight’s black box cockpit voice recorder. NTSB said there’s nothing on it. NEW – No data captured on Alaska Airlines 737 cockpit voice recorder‚ NTSB says 'there's nothing on it' — Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) January 8‚ 2024 .@ntsb says the Cockpit voice recorder was completely overwritten. Investigators have nothing from it. They only last 2hrs and by the time it was pulled it was overwritten. It’s the 10th time in the less than a decade this has happened in an ntsb investigation. — Kris Van Cleave (@krisvancleave) January 8‚ 2024 From the New York Post: National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said at a press conference the in-flight audio of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282‚ which was carrying 171 passengers‚ had been lost amid the chaos of making an emergency landing at Portland International Airport in Oregon 35 minutes into its journey. “The cockpit voice recorder was completely overwritten. There was nothing on the cockpit voice recorder‚” Homendy told reporters. Current Federal Aviation Authority regulations only require black boxes to record two hours of flight audio‚ including pilots’ voices‚ any incoming or outgoing radio transmissions or any engine sounds. At the two-hour mark‚ any captured audio is automatically recorded over with the next two hours. The Boeing 787 MAX 9 aircraft — which had been scheduled to fly between Portland and Ontario‚ Calif. — had to return to the airport after a plug covering an unused exit door went flying off mid-flight‚ leaving a gaping hole to the outside and prompting the emergency landing. No one aboard the flight was injured and the 63-pound door plug was found by a Portland teacher in his backyard Sunday. Once the craft landed and was safely evacuated‚ maintenance crews went to retrieve the black box but found the audio was overwritten because the circuit breaker had not been cut. “We have nothing‚” Homendy said.

Alaska Airlines and United Airlines found loose bolts on some of their Boeing 737-9 MAXs while inspecting the planes.  The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded certain 737-9 MAXs following the emergency landing made by Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. Alaska Airlines says they have now found loose bolts on some of their Boeing 737-9 MAXs “Initial reports from our technicians indicate some loose hardware was visible on some aircraft‚” the statement says. https://t.co/c7xNCBorVN — avgeekjake (@avgeekjake) January 9‚ 2024 “As our maintenance technicians began preparing our 737-9 MAX fleet for inspections‚ they accessed the area in question. Initial reports from our technicians indicate some loose hardware was visible on some aircraft‚” Alaska Airlines stated. From Alaska Airlines: When we are able to proceed with the formal inspection process‚ all aircraft will be thoroughly inspected in accordance with detailed instructions provided by the FAA in consultation with Boeing. Any findings will be fully addressed in a matter that satisfies our safety standards and FAA compliance. The formal inspections will also require documenting all findings and those will be reported to the FAA. No aircraft will be returned to service until all of these steps are complete. The safety of these aircraft is our priority and we will take the time and steps necessary to ensure their airworthiness‚ in close partnership with the FAA. United Airlines also found loose bolts on several Boeing 737-9 MAX planes. “United Airlines said Monday that it has found loose bolts on door plugs of several Boeing 737 Max 9 planes during inspections spurred when a panel of that type blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight using that type of aircraft last week‚” CNBC wrote. BREAKING: United Airlines has found loose bolts and other parts on 737 Max 9 plug doors as it inspects its fleet of Boeing jets following the Friday rapid depressurization aboard an Alaska Airlines jet of the same make – The Air Current pic.twitter.com/JmNIQ1hntF — Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) January 8‚ 2024 WATCH: United Airlines says inspectors found loose bolts on the door plugs on several of its grounded 737 Max 9 planes days after an unused exit door blew out of an Alaska Airlines plane mid-flight. The NTSB says the door was found in a backyard near Portland. https://t.co/moWArVLS7b pic.twitter.com/VWTMK0XkEg — CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) January 9‚ 2024 CNBC reports: Alaska has 65 of the Max 9 planes in its fleet. United has 79‚ making it the biggest operator of the jet model. “Since we began preliminary inspections on Saturday‚ we have found instances that appear to relate to installation issues in the door plug — for example‚ bolts that needed additional tightening‚” United said in a statement. “These findings will be remedied by our Tech Ops team to safely return the aircraft to service.” The FAA earlier Monday declined to comment on the airline’s findings. Plane manufacturer Boeing said earlier Monday it issued instructions to airlines to conduct the inspections of the Max 9s in their fleets. United had begun some preliminary inspection work in the past few days. “We are committed to ensuring every Boeing airplane meets design specifications and the highest safety and quality standards‚” Boeing said in a statement Monday evening. “We regret the impact this has had on our customers and their passengers.” No one was seriously injured in the accident aboard the Alaska Airlines flight‚ though the blown-out panel produced a force so violent that some headrests and seatbacks were ripped from the cabin and the cockpit door was flung open‚ according to initial details of a federal safety investigation. No passengers were seated in the two seats next to the panel.

CNN unveiled its first Electoral College projection for the 2024 presidential election. The map shows Donald Trump positioned to take the White House. Without considering Arizona‚ Pennsylvania‚ and Wisconsin‚ the biggest toss-up states‚ Republicans have a 272-225 advantage on the map.  If Democrats take the three toss-up states‚ Republicans still have a 272-265 edge. According to CNN’s map‚ the Republican nominee would take Georgia‚ North Carolina‚ Michigan‚ Ohio‚ and Nevada. The Democrat nominee would take Virginia. Map of 2024 based on CNN projections Obviously take this with a grain of salt‚ but if this is indicative of reality and holds until November‚ this year will be interesting pic.twitter.com/IEsIGTaVrX — Jesse Hughes (@jhughes1776) January 6‚ 2024 A closer look: Per CNN: CNN’s inaugural “Road to 270” electoral map shows President Joe Biden struggling to recreate his Electoral College majority from his successful 2020 run and former President Donald Trump with enough states solidly in his corner or leaning in his direction to put him in a position to win the presidency again. This first look at a potential Biden vs. Trump rematch – and the electoral math each would need to capture 270 electoral votes – captures the dynamics at play 10 months from Election Day. Biden is an incumbent president with stubbornly low approval ratings‚ persistent questions and concerns about his ability to serve another term‚ and diminished support from some key components of his winning coalition from 2020. Trump is a seriously flawed candidate who has promised to govern in undemocratic ways and who has already been rejected once by the American people after serving one term as president. He faces four criminal indictments consisting of 91 charges related to his attempts to overturn the legitimate 2020 election results‚ his mishandling of classified documents after leaving office and allegedly obstructing law enforcement’s attempts to retrieve them‚ and his falsifying of business records to conceal a hush payment to keep an adult film star from going public with claims of an extramarital affair‚ which he denies‚ in the weeks leading up to the 2016 election. He’s pleaded not guilty to all charges against him and maintained no wrongdoing. We should be very clear about what this electoral outlook is and‚ more importantly‚ what it is not. It is the first snapshot of the Electoral College landscape in what will likely prove to be another very close and extraordinarily consequential presidential election. It is not a prediction of how things will turn out in November. It’s not even a prediction of what things may look like when the parties gather for their nominating conventions this summer. This is an exercise designed to capture where the race stands today. If we have learned anything in recent American political history‚ it is to expect the unexpected. We don’t even know for certain if Biden and Trump will be the two major party nominees in the fall. However‚ since that appears to be the likeliest choice at this point‚ we have explored this initial outlook through the lens of a Biden vs. Trump race. Future versions of this outlook will similarly reflect the realities of the race‚ as best we can assess them at the time. It is critical to remember that in the last two presidential contests‚ the loser and the winner were separated by fewer than a combined 80‚000 votes across three battleground states out of more than 130–155 million votes cast nationwide. RedState reports: Now‚ it is early‚ and I have doubts about things like Michigan leaning red. And we’ve already seen many data points that are spelling trouble for Biden that seem to back it up. From swing states going to Trump to Biden starting to hemorrhage people from vital groups he needs‚ including the young‚ the more left‚ black voters‚ and yes‚ Muslims in Michigan saying they’re not going to vote for Biden because of his stance on the Israel Hamas war. Even Barack Obama is worried about the election and Trump’s strength. So I think it’s fair to say this is one more sign of big trouble for Biden. In the latest polls‚ Donald Trump led Joe Biden amongst young and Hispanic voters. Former President Donald Trump's lead over Democrat incumbent President Joe Biden in the latest poll is partially attributable to Trump's strength with Hispanic and young voters‚ as well as high enthusiasm for his campaign. See more: https://t.co/vvfGmLiOeO pic.twitter.com/4wOL42ZKpf — NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) January 1‚ 2024 Per Newsmax: Former President Donald Trump’s lead over Democrat incumbent President Joe Biden in the latest USA Today/Suffolk University Poll is partially attributable to Trump’s strength with Hispanic and young voters‚ as well as high enthusiasm for his campaign. Trump leads Biden by 2 points (39%-37%) nationally in a three-way ballot test between the two major party candidates and an unnamed third-party or independent choice (17%). With seven names in the ballot test‚ Trump expands his lead to 3 points (37%-34%). Biden’s slip in the polling is due to Black voters abandoning him for third-party options‚ while Trump now holds leads outside of the 3.1 percentage point margin of error among both Hispanic voters and voters under 35 years old.

1760 - Afghans defeat the Indian Maratha Empire in the Battle of Barari Ghat 1792 - Russia and Turkey sign Peace of Jassy 1894 - New England Telephone and Telegraph installs the first battery-operated telephone switchboard in Lexington‚ Massachusetts. 1908 - Muir Woods National Monument‚ California‚ established 1937 - Maxwell Anderson's stage drama "High Tor" premieres at Martin Beck Theatre‚ NYC; runs for 171 performances‚ wins Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Play 1945 - US soldiers led by General Douglas MacArthur invades Philippines 1951 - Washington Capitals NBA team folds 1977 - Australian Open Men's Tennis: American Roscoe Tanner wins his first and only Grand Slam event; beats Guillermo Vilas of Argentina 6-3‚ 6-3‚ 6-3 2007 - 33rd People's Choice Awards: Johnny Depp and Jennifer Aniston win (Movie Star) and Patrick Dempsey and Eva Longoria win (TV) 2021 - Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 crashes in the Java Sea just after take off from Jakarta‚ Indonesia‚ killing all 62 on board More Historical Events »

Historical Events 1493 - Christopher Columbus mistakes manatees for mermaids‚ describing them as "not half as beautiful as they are painted" 1957 - Dutch Newspaper Society expels communist daily paper "Truth" 1967 - "More of the Monkees" second album by The Monkees is released 1995 - Ecuador and Peru involved in boundary fight 2010 - Hopman Cup Tennis‚ Perth: María José Martínez Sánchez and Tommy Robredo of Spain beat British pair Laura Robson and Andy Murray 7-6‚ 7-5 to clinch a 2-1 win; Spain's 3rd title 2012 - "Time is Love" single released by Josh Turner (Billboard Song of the Year 2012) More Historical Events » Famous Birthdays 1620 - Johann Weichmann‚ German organist‚ and sacred and secular music composer (Sorgen-Lägerin)‚ born in Wolgast‚ Pomerania (d. 1652) 1829 - Thomas William Robertson‚ English playwright (Caste)‚ born in Newark-on-Trent‚ England (d. 1871) 1910 - Dick Henry Jurgen‚ American swing music bandleader‚ born in Sacramento‚ California (d. 1995) 1914 - Derek Allhusen‚ English equestrian rider (Olympic gold team‚ silver Individual eventing 1968)‚ born in London‚ England (d. 2000) 1956 - Imelda Staunton‚ British actress (Finding Your Feet‚ Maleficent)‚ born in Archway‚ London 1967 - Dave Mcllwain‚ Canadian NHL center (Pitts Penguins)‚ born in Seaforth‚ Canada More Famous Birthdays » Famous Deaths 1895 - Aaron Lufkin Dennison‚ 'Father of American watchmaking'‚ American watch manufacturer and businessman (Tremont Watch Company)‚ dies at 82 1964 - Frank "Big Boy" Goudie‚ American jazz tenor saxophonist and clarinetist‚ and upholsterer‚ dies of cancer at 64 1975 - Pyotr Sergeyevich Novikov‚ Russian mathematician (group theory)‚ dies at 73 1979 - Avery Claflin‚ American banker and composer ("Lament for April 15" - income tax form instructions set to music)‚ dies at 80 2008 - William Quinn‚ Irish Republican Army soldier (b. 1950) 2018 - Karin von Aroldingen‚ German ballet dancer (NYC Ballet)‚ dies at 76 More Famous Deaths »