The captain who guided an Alaska Airlines jet after a mid-air panel blowout in 2024 is taking Boeing to court for $10 million, accusing the company of trying to pin blame for the near-disaster on him. In a lawsuit filed in Oregon, attorneys for Capt. Brandon Fisher allege Boeing attempted to "scapegoat" the flight crew after a door plug tore off Flight 1282 shortly after takeoff, per Business Insider. The Boeing 737 Max 9 lost the panel at about 16,000 feet, forcing Fisher and First Officer Emily Wiprud to declare an emergency, rapidly descend to an altitude safe for breathing, and finally make an emergency landing. The suit praises Fisher's "heroism" and "immense composure," arguing that his actions prevented a catastrophe.
The National Transportation Safety Board later determined the jet left Boeing's factory missing critical bolts that should have secured the door plug. According to preliminary findings, the fuselage arrived from supplier Spirit AeroSystems with damaged rivets; Boeing workers removed the plug to fix those rivets but failed to reinstall the bolts, and the work was never properly logged or inspected. Spirit, which Boeing has since largely acquired in a bid to tighten control of its supply chain, is also named as a defendant.
Fisher's suit, claiming severe emotional distress, argues Boeing's legal posture in a related class-action case, where the company asserted its products were "improperly maintained or misused" by others, was "directed at Captain Fisher in attempt to paint him as the scapegoat for Boeing's numerous failures." The suit also claims the FBI told Fisher that he may have been the victim of criminally negligent conduct by Boeing, KATU reports. Boeing declined to comment on Fisher's suit, while Alaska Airlines said it remains grateful to Flight 1282 crewmembers for their "bravery and quick thinking." (Other crewmembers sued Boeing last year.)
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