Boeing jetliner that suffered inflight blowout was restricted because of concern over warning light

A federal official says the Boeing jetliner that suffered an inflight blowout over Portland, Oregon, was not being used for flights to Hawaii after a warning light that could have indicated a pressurization problem lit up on three different flights

PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Boeing jetliner that suffered an inflight blowout over Oregon was not being used for flights to Hawaii after a warning light that could have indicated a pressurization problem lit up on three different flights.

Alaska Airlines decided to restrict the aircraft from long flights over water so the plane “could return very quickly to an airport” if the warning light reappeared, Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, said on Sunday.

Shares of The Boeing Co. tumbled 9% at the opening bell Monday, the first day of trading since the incident occurred. Shares of Alaska Airlines slid 4% and Spirit AeroSystems, which builds the fuselage for Boeing’s 737 Max, plunged 14%.

Homendy cautioned that the pressurization light might be unrelated to Friday’s incident in which a plug covering an unused exit door blew off the Boeing 737 Max 9 as it cruised about three miles (4.8 kilometers) over Oregon.

The warning light came on during three previous flights: on Dec. 7, Jan. 3 and Jan. 4 — the day before the door plug broke off. Homendy said she didn’t have all the details regarding the Dec. 7 incident but specified the light came on during a flight on Jan. 3 and on Jan. 4 after the plane had landed.