NEW YORK, Jan 11 ― Boeing is still in fact-finding mode following Friday's near-catastrophic aviation incident, searching for "what broke down” in its processes, Chief Executive Dave Calhoun said yesterday.

Calhoun, in his first media appearance since the Alaska Airlines panel blowout on a Boeing 737 MAX described the problem as a "quality escape” in a 10-minute interview with CNBC.

"We're going to want to know what broke down in our gauntlet of inspections, what broke down in the original work that allowed for that escape to happen,” Calhoun said.

On Friday night, Alaska Airlines successfully executed an emergency landing with no fatalities or major injuries after a panel known as a "door plug” came off.

Video images of the incident showed a gaping hole in the side of the plane and oxygen masks dangling in the suddenly depressurized cabin.

Calhoun, who has vowed "complete transparency,” described the event as a "horrible escape,” adding that a comprehensive investigation was needed.

"It certainly can never happen again,” he said.

US regulators have grounded 171 of the 737 MAX 9 planes with the same configuration as the Alaska Airlines jet.

Since the incident, both United Airlines and Alaska Airlines reported Monday finding loose hardware on some of their Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes during preliminary inspections. ― AFP