US Secretary of State Antony Blinken encountered difficulties while traveling to Brussels for a meeting with NATO foreign ministers. The Air Force C-40 jet, which is a modified version of the Boeing 737, experienced unspecified issues and forced Blinken and other State Department officials to travel by car. This was not the first time Blinken has had problems with a Boeing plane during his travels. Earlier this year, a similar model faced a critical failure due to an oxygen leak while returning from Switzerland.
Boeing has been under increased scrutiny following incidents like the door plug blowing off a 737 Max on an Alaska Airlines flight, causing a hole in the side of the plane. This incident, along with other problems on subsequent flights, has raised concerns about the quality and safety of Boeing jets. However, investigations have shown that many of the issues reported with Boeing jets occurred on older planes and may not necessarily be caused by anything Boeing did.
Despite these findings, media coverage of these incidents has brought more attention to the overall safety of Boeing aircraft. As a result, investigations into Boeing’s practices have been launched in response to these incidents. While Blinken arrived in Brussels without incident for his NATO meeting, it is clear that concerns about the safety of commercial jets remain high.
