Laura Laplaud 12:47 p.m., February 20, 2024

In mid-flight, a Boeing 737-8 Max, from Smartlynx Airlines Malta which was connecting Istanbul to Stuggart on Monday, suffered a crack in its windshield at more than 8,500 meters altitude. A new incident for the American manufacturer.

New fear on a Boeing. On Monday, while in mid-flight, at an altitude of more than 8,500 meters, the windshield of a 737-8 Max plane cracked, reports The Aviation Herald. Luckily, the window did not completely split, causing no depressurization in the device. The pilot was therefore able to land it safely, 25 minutes later, on the runway of Stuggart airport in Germany.

The plane still on the ground

The incident occurred on a flight of the Smartlynx Airlines Malta company, the Maltese subsidiary of the Latvian company Smartlynx, which linked Istanbul in Turkey to Stuttgart in Germany. “The crew reported a crack that had developed on one of their windshields,” explains The Aviation Herald, a site specializing in reporting commercial aviation accidents and incidents.

The plane remained on the ground on the runway at Stuttgart airport for around five hours, before making its return flight to Sabiha Gokcen Airport in Istanbul. 16 hours after landing, the 737-8 Max is still on the ground, the site indicates.

Boeing in turmoil

Although this type of incident may seem worrying, it is nonetheless quite common, according to numerous reports of windshield cracks. On February 8, a crack in the windshield of a Boeing 787-9 flying from Milan, Italy, to Muscat, Oman, was reported. Another incident of this type was reported on January 29, this time on an Airbus A320-200.

>> READ ALSO

- How do you know if you are traveling on a Boeing 737 Max?

In recent months, the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing has experienced other episodes of failure. On January 5, the door of a Boeing 737-9 Max came off during an Alaska Airlines flight which was to connect Porland (Oregon) to Ontario (California). Four bolts intended to prevent the cap holder from moving upward were missing, according to a preliminary report from the U.S. Transportation Safety Agency. Fortunately, the incident caused only minor injuries.