What does the Alaska Airlines incident tell us about air safety?

The fuselage plug area of the Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 seen during its investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in Portland. [NTSB/Handout via Reuters]

Last week, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in Portland, the United States, when a cabin panel blew off in midair leaving a gaping hole in the aircraft’s fuselage. Just days before, a Japan Airways Airbus collided with a smaller coastguard plane, resulting in the Airbus catching fire.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered an inquiry into the incident and several passengers filed a class action lawsuit against Boeing in Washington state on Thursday.