Jumpo Jet Rips Open

On February 24th, 1989 a Jumpo Jet carrying 355 people to New Zealand ripped open leading to the death of nine passengers.  A giant hole, about 10-20 feet wide, had opened in the side of the plane and sucked the nine passengers out. Passengers said that they felt what seemed like an explosion 20 to 30 minutes after the jet left the airport. Other passengers were injured due to the rapid decompression of the cabin. Luckily, these passengers survived. Some of the flight attended nearly died trying to hang on and keep from getting sucked out the giant hole.  The pilots believed that the plane had been bombed and immediately descended to a lower altitude to get breathable air. Despite the fact that two of the jet's four engines had failed, the pilot was able to fly 50 miles back to Honolulu and land the plane safely. Federal officials believed that it was probably not foul play but they couldn't be one hundred percent sure until they investigated.  Federal official came up with a number of causes which could have causes the whole to open up. One was centered around the idea that the cargo door had maybe failed to lock. Another was that an explosion in an engine had caused part of the engine to pierce the fuselage.  Eventually, they were able to determine that the cargo door had popped open and slammed into the side of the jet, leading to a few of the passengers being sucked out. A previous investigation revealed the problems with airplane doors that open outward instead of into the plane. Yet this plane had done nothing to change their doors and make them safer. This was a tragedy for many but also forced planes to be improved and become safer for everyone to use.