More trouble for Boeing after Japan aircraft finds cracked window midair

A domestic flight operated by Japan’s All Nippon Airways had to return to its departure airport on Saturday after the discovery of a crack in the cockpit window of the Boeing 737-800 aircraft while midair, according to an airline spokesperson.

Flight 1182 was originally bound for Toyama airport but had to divert back to Sapporo-New Chitose airport after the crack was detected in the outermost of the four layers of windows that encircle the cockpit, the spokesperson stated. Fortunately, there were no reported injuries among the 59 passengers and six crew members.

The aircraft in question was not among Boeing’s 737 MAX 9 airplanes, which have recently garnered attention due to an incident where a cabin panel detached from a new Alaska Airlines jet during a flight last week.

“The crack did not have any impact on the flight’s control or pressurization systems,” clarified the ANA spokesperson. On Friday, the U.S. aviation regulator extended the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX 9 airplanes indefinitely to conduct additional safety inspections and also announced stricter oversight measures for Boeing as a whole.