I travel to 20+ countries a year sharing my firsthand knowledge of reward travel, travel credit card deals, travel tips and more. One of the big travel stories of the year was the frightening January 5th incident that took place on Alaska Airlines shortly after takeoff from Portland, Oregon (PDX). At 16,000 feet, a 60-pound door plug blew out from a nearly new Boeing 737 MAX 9, leaving a gaping hole in the fuselage. Miraculously, no one was killed but the incident raised some serious questions. It turns out Boeing and Alaska knew of the potential dangers.