Southwest Airlines Boeing plane loses part of engine minutes after takeoff

A Boeing 737 plane from the American company Southwest Airlines had to return to Denver airport on Sunday after the cover of one of its engines came off and hit the wing during takeoff.

The incident took place at 8:15 a.m. when the 737-800 aircraft returned to Denver International Airport, 25 minutes after takeoff, after the engine cover came off and hit one of the spoilers.

The aircraft, which wsa bound for Houston's William P. Hobby Airport, had 135 passengers and six crew members, who were not injured.

This event, which will be investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), adds to the list of incidents at the second largest aircraft manufacturer in the world.

“We apologize for the inconvenience and delay, but we give our highest priority to maximum safety for our customers and employees. Our maintenance teams are inspecting the aircraft,” the airline said in a statement on Sunday.

The passengers were transferred to another plane, which arrived four hours later.

This incident adds to the list of problems for Boeing. In early January 2024, an Alaska Airlines flight had to make an emergency landing in Portland after the door plug came loose shortly after takeoff.

This prompted the FAA to order the temporary grounding of dozens of Boeing 737 Max 9s for inspections following the incident.

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun will step down at the end of 2024 as part of a broad management shakeup at the embattled aerospace giant.

Board Chairman Larry Kellner will also resign and leave the board at Boeing's annual meeting in May. He will be replaced by Steve Mollenkopf, who has been head of Boeing since 2020.

The company also announced that Stan Deal, CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, will retire. His place will be taken by Stephanie Pope, Boeing's chief operating officer since January.