FAA grounds Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners after plane suffers a blowout

In a Monday, March 23, 2020 file photo, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 Max lands at Paine Field near Boeing’s manufacturing facility in Everett, Wash., north of Seattle. U.S. regulators are requiring inspections and possible repairs to engine coverings of all Boeing 737 Max jets. (AP Photos)

Federal officials on Saturday ordered the immediate grounding of Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners until they are inspected after an Alaska Airlines plane suffered a blowout that left a gaping hole in the side of the fuselage.

The required inspections take around four to eight hours per aircraft and affect about 171 airplanes worldwide. As of Saturday morning, inspections on more than a quarter of the fleet were complete “with no concerning findings,” the company said.