The plane had to divert to Tampa due to a door indicator light turning on, according to an airport spokesperson. Fire crews responded, which is normal.
“You don’t ignore lights and you don’t attempt to reset them and say, well, maybe it’s just a sensor,” said John Cox, an aviation expert and a former captain.
A door light coming on may not seem like a big deal, but Cox said it needs to be taken seriously.
“There’s a procedure that you follow, that is in the checklist, the abnormal checklist, and you follow that procedure, and you go ahead, and you pick a diversion airport and go land there,” Cox said.
According to the retired captain, the fact that the crew made the diversion is not surprising, but this type of light coming on is not part of everyday travel.
“I’ve probably, in a 25-year career as an airline pilot, I’ve might of have five or six, something like that,” Cox stated.
Diverting a plan is not as simple as just choosing another place to land, according to Cox.
“You need to advise air traffic control, you need to advise the company so they can have a gate for you, they can have maintenance wait for you,” he said.
The aircraft that diverted to TPA was not a 737 MAX 9, like the Alaska Airlines plane that had a door blown out mid-flight.
“These doors are designed to be larger than the hole that they’re in,” Cox said. “As the airplane pressurizes, they can’t really come out. I know the Alaska case, that’s a very unusual case.”
Still, questions remain about if the public should feel safe flying in Boeing aircrafts.
NBC’s Tom Costello put that question to U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg.
“I will say is that every plane they deliver to an airline, every plane that goes into the skies needs to be 100% safe and they need to be able to demonstrate that,” Buttigieg said.
Even with Wednesday’s emergency landing, Cox said flying is still the safest way to travel.
“Flying really only has one dangerous part to it, driving to and from the airport,” he said.
The airline told News Channel 8 that there were 123 passengers and five crew members on board the plane.
United said it’s making arrangements for those passengers “to complete their journeys at the earliest opportunity.”
According to FlightAware, the plane left TPA at 6:11 p.m. and is expected to land in Chicago at 8 p.m. local time.
FAA registration records show the plane was manufactured in 2007.
