Passengers on doomed Alaska Airlines flight may be victims of a crime, FBI warns in a letter months after door plug flew off Boeing plane mid-air

Passengers aboard the doomed Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 have been notified by the Seattle FBI office that they may each be considered a 'possible victim of a crime' following a midair blowout incident earlier this year.

The agency's Seattle Division sent a letter to passengers on Tuesday, confirming a criminal investigation by the FBI following the blowout incident on a Boeing 737 MAX airliner on January 5. 

'As a Victim Specialist with the Seattle Division, I'm contacting you because we have identified you as a possible victim of a crime,' the letter sent to Alaska Flight 1282 passengers read.

The letter also claimed that due to the complexity of the investigation and the large number of potential victims, updates on its progress may not be revealed.

'This case is currently under investigation by the FBI,' it continued. 'A criminal investigation can be a lengthy undertaking, and for several reasons, we cannot tell you about its progress at this time.' 

Passengers aboard the doomed Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 have been notified by the Seattle FBI office that they may each be considered a 'possible victim of a crime' following a midair blowout incident earlier this year.

A copy of the March 19 letter was shared by Attorney Mark Lindquist, who represents passengers on the flight. 

Earlier this month, the Justice Department opened a criminal investigation into the Alaska Airlines flight which suffered the near catastrophic blow out at 16,000 feet. 

A door plug blew off midflight on January 5 with 171 passengers and crew onboard, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon.

Investigators contacted some passengers informing them they may be the victim of a crime, and interviewed pilots and flight attendants, according to documents seen by The Wall Street Journal. 

The investigation may not result in formal charges of wrongdoing, but it will inform a Justice Department review of whether Boeing has met the requirements of the settlements reached after the two deadly crashes in 2018 and 2019.

In January, an Alaska Airlines flight suffered a near-catastrophe as a plane door blew out at 16,000ft over Portland 

There were no serious injuries from the terrifying air failure, but passenger's belongings including phones flew out of the aircraft

If they have not met the terms of the settlement, then Boeing could be prosecuted on a count of defrauding the US.

The latest development into the investigation of Boeing adds to the company's woes that include a civil investigation in addition to other recent high-profile incidents involving its jets.

Alaska Airlines told The Journal at the time: 'In an event like this, it’s normal for the DOJ to be conducting an investigation. We are fully cooperating and do not believe we are a target of the investigation.'

The criminal investigation follows civil probes from the the National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA which found 'multiple instances where the companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.'

The criminal investigation will examine whether Boeing has met the conditions of the 2021 settlement reached after the fatal 2018 and 2019 crashes that killed 346 people.

The first occurred when a Max 8 operated by Indonesia's Lion Air plunged into the Java Sea in October 2018.

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun  speaks with reports at the Capitol in January after MAX 9 planes were grounded

The second was when an Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max 8 crashed nearly straight down into a field six minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa in March 2019.

Boeing reached a $2.5 billion settlement with the FBI and the Transportation Department in the wake of the crashes, admitting that two former employees had misled the FAA over how much training a new flight control system would require.

If the Justice Department finds that Boeing has violated the terms of that settlement, they could face prosecution on the original count of defrauding the US.

Boeing declined to comment on the criminal investigation. DailyMail.com contacted Alaska Airlines for comment.

Boeing is also facing a civil lawsuit from a group of passengers onboard the flight.