Alaska Airlines Passenger Opens Emergency Exit & Walks On Wing

Alaska Airlines has hit the headlines after a passenger opened the emergency exit door upon arrival. The incident took place on December 22nd, 2024, onboard Alaska Airlines Flight 323, which had just landed at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) from Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport (MKE).

Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

The Boeing 737-900ER was taxiing towards gate 9 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport when the passenger opened the door and stepped out onto the wing. Speaking to KIRO 7 News, an eyewitness said,

“A passenger, upon arrival at a gate from [an] inbound Milwaukee flight, opened an emergency exit and walked out on the wing.”

The passenger will not face charges from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

According to a spokesperson for Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the passenger tried to exit the aircraft because they had become anxious. The local fire and crisis intervention team arrived at the scene, and after assessing the passenger, it was decided not to press charges. However, the spokesperson went on to say that the passenger may have broken Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules, so both the FAA and FBI had been alerted to the incident.

Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

In a statement, Alaska Airlines confirmed the incident and apologized to anyone affected, saying,

“This evening, upon arrival from Milwaukee in Seattle, there was an incident on Alaska Airlines Flight 323 involving a disruptive guest. The matter was safely resolved. We are working with our crew and airport officials to gather more details about what may have transpired. We thank our employees for their swift response and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused our guests.”

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This is not the first time that an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 has made the headlines. In January 2024, a Boeing 737 MAX 9 belonging to the airline experienced a door blow-out mid-flight while en route from Portland International Airport (PDX) to Ontario International Airport (ONT). All 171 passengers and six crew members onboard Flight 1282 survived the incident, although three were treated for minor injuries.

Photo: Ian Dewar Photography | Shutterstock

The now well-documented incident led to the temporary grounding issued by the FAA of all 737 MAX 9s with a similar mid-cabin door plug, which also impacted other carriers worldwide, including United Airlines, Copa Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Lion Air.

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Alaska Airlines and the Boeing 737-900ER

Alaska Airlines Flight 323 was operated by a Boeing 737-900ER, registered as N282AK. According to the flight tracking website Flightradar24, the flight in question on December 22nd, 2024, was N282AK’s second flight of the day, after having operated from its base in Seattle to Milwaukee earlier that morning. The day prior, the aircraft had operated five flights of varying lengths, ranging from one hour to six hours:

• Flight 1183 – Palm Springs (PSP) to Seattle (SEA)
• Flight 778 – Seattle (SEA) to Palm Springs (PSP)
• Flight 697 – Missoula (MSO) to Seattle (SEA)
• Flight 698 – Seattle (SEA) to Missoula (MSO)
• Flight 519 – Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Seattle (SEA).

Photo: Robin Guess | Shutterstock

The latest data from ch-aviation shows that N282AK is one of 79 737-900ERs in the airline’s fleet, and was delivered new to Alaska Airlines in November 2017, making it just over seven years old at the time of writing. Each of Alaska Airlines’ 737-900ERs can carry up to 178 passengers in a two-class configuration – 16 in first class and 162 in economy class.

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Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport

Flight 323 is one of four flights per week operated by Alaska Airlines between Milwaukee and Seattle. The carrier does not face any direct competition on the route, but plenty of one-stop options are available with the likes of American Airlines, United Airlines, and Delta Air Lines, via their respective hubs in Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Denver (DEN), and Minneapolis/Saint Paul (MSP).

Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport saw just over 6.1 million passengers in 2023, which shows a strong recovery from the pandemic, but is still some way behind the airport’s peak of 9.8 million passengers in 2010.

Photo: Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport

By far the largest airline to operate at the facility over the past 12 months was Southwest Airlines, commanding an impressive market share of 38.5%. The low-cost carrier was followed by Delta Air Lines (17.9%), American Airlines (10.5%), SkyWest Airlines (8.5%), and Republic Airways (3.7%).

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The busiest domestic routes from Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport in 2023 were:

1. Atlanta (ATL) – 355,000 passengers
2. Denver (DEN) – 317,000 passengers
3. Orlando (MCO) – 230,000 passengers
4. Las Vegas (LAS) – 195,000 passengers
5. Phoenix (PHX) – 179,000 passengers.

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