The technical failure of the American foreign minister’s plane became a problem.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who traveled to Switzerland for the Davos meeting, suffered an oxygen leak while returning from his plane, leaving him stranded for a while.
Another plane is said to have been sent to Switzerland to bring him back to America.
Blinken and the traveling party boarded the modified Boeing 737 jet in Zurich on Wednesday after a day and a half of meetings at the global summit in Davos.
The plane suffered the issue after boarding and the party was forced to deplane, according to the traveling press.
A new, smaller aircraft was being sent for Blinken, and many in the traveling party will now be returning to Washington commercially, according to the traveling press. State Department spokesperson Matt Miller on Wednesday said the plane suffered a mechanical issue. He said Blinken was still expected to be back in Washington Wednesday evening and referred further questions to the US Air Force.
This is just the latest blow to Boeing’s once stellar, now badly tarnished reputation. On Jan. 5 an Alaska Airlines jet had a door plug blow out shortly after takeoff when the plane was at 16,000 feet, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the jet.
Fortunately, no one was sitting in the seat next to the hole, and no one was seriously injured. However, the incident led to the temporary grounding of all 737 Max 9 jets as airlines were ordered to inspect them for possible faulty assembly and loose or missing bolts. While the cause of that accident is still under investigation, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun has acknowledged a “mistake” by Boeing led to the incident.