Alaska Airlines Flight Arrives at Portland Airport with Open Cargo Door and Pets Inside

Mar. 15, 2025

Alaska Horizon airplane – stock image.Photo:Getty

Getty

Alaska Airlinesis in the news once again for a recent incident concerning a commercial flight.

Alaska Airlines Flight 1437 landed safely at the gates at Portland International Airport last week after traveling from Los Cabos, Mexico, however, according to multiple sources, the aircraft’s cargo door was open with passengers’ pets inside upon arrival.

In an article published on Thursday, Portland’sKOIN 6stated that a source close to the situation said the airplane did not require an emergency landing, though it was unclear just how long the cargo door was ajar.

“Upon landing at PDX on March 1, Alaska Airlines flight 1437 was discovered to have the forward cargo door unsealed,” the company said in a statement to the news station.

plane cargo door – stock image.getty

getty

“There was no indication to the crew that the door was unsealed during flight and all indications point to the door partially opening after landing. Our maintenance teams inspected the aircraft, replaced a spring in the door, tested the door and reentered it into service.”

PEOPLE reached out to Alaska Airlines for additional information, but did not immediately hear back.

This comes after the airline recently came under fire in early January when an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 aircraft heading from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California had to make an emergency landing whena portion of the plane blew out mid-flightas passengers were onboard.

The impact was so severe that one passengerclaimed his shirt was ripped offfrom the sudden pressure in the cabin.

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Diego Murillo, who had been on January flight, told theBBCthe hole left in the airplane was “as wide as a refrigerator.”

Another passenger named Evan Smith told the outlet that “all the air masks dropped” as a result.

In anews releaseposted to the company’s website on Jan. 5, Alaska Airlines admitted that Flight 1282 “​​experienced an incident this evening soon after departure.”

They added that all “171 guests and 6 crew members” made it to their destination and said the incident was under investigation.

“My heart goes out to those who were on this flight – I am so sorry for what you experienced,” company CEO Ben Minicucci said in a statement.

Alaska Airlines airplane – stock image.Getty

“I am so grateful for the response of our pilots and flight attendants. We have teams on the ground in Portland assisting passengers and are working to support guests who are traveling in the days ahead.”

Minicucci also said that the company made the decision to temporarily ground “our fleet of 65 Boeing 737-9” aircrafts to have inspections performed.

Passengers on the flight were also given$1,500 in compensation.

Per the complaint, they allegedly “suffered severe mental, emotional, and psychological injuries, including post-traumatic stress, and physical injuries,” which were a “direct result of the frightful, death-threatening failure of the Boeing aircraft.”

source: people.com