While Sean Bates took a Sunday stroll in Oregon, he remained vigilant, searching for the door plug from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282.
The National Transportation Safety Board had issued a public appeal seeking assistance in locating the plug that dislodged from the Boeing 737 Max 9 shortly after it departed from Portland International Airport on Friday night.
Last Friday, Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 was en route from Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California, when it was forced to make an emergency landing due to the unexpected detachment of a door plug. This resulted in a section of the fuselage blowing out, resulting in a large opening in the main cabin. The incident transpired shortly after takeoff, and while there were no severe injuries, numerous items, including a child's shirt he was wearing, were sucked out of the Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft.
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While scanning for the door plug or any debris during his walk along Barnes Road in Portland, Bates came across an item that belonged to a passenger.
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"I found a phone sitting on the side of the road that had apparently fallen 16,000 feet," Bates stated in a video posted on social media on Sunday.
The iPhone discovered by Bates beneath a roadside bush appeared to be in relatively good condition, he mentioned. He observed that there were no visible scratches on it when he initially retrieved it.
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Bates admitted to feeling "a little skeptical" at first, considering the possibility that it might have been thrown from a passing vehicle. However, he soon discovered that the phone wasn't locked, prompting him to inspect its contents.
"It was in airplane mode with a travel confirmation and baggage claim for Alaska 1282," Bates said. "So, I had to go call the NTSB."
Bates mentioned that a staff member from the NTSB informed him that it was the second passenger's phone recovered from the flight. This information was subsequently confirmed by the NTSB.
The NTSB later stated that the door plug had been located in a teacher's backyard on Sunday and expressed its intention to retrieve it.
Alaska Airlines reported that Flight 1282, headed for Ontario, California, had a total of 6 crew members and 171 passengers on board. The aircraft successfully landed following the in-flight emergency.
Alaska Airlines released a statement emphasizing, "The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority, so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation."
Passenger's Apple iPhone Survives 16,000-Foot Drop from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, Found Intact With No Scratches
