SEATTLE (AP) — The MD-83 that crashed in Nigeria Sunday was originally owned by Seattle-based Alaska Airlines.
Company spokesman Paul McElroy said Monday that Alaska bought the plane in October 1990 from McDonnell Douglas, sold it in May 2007 to North Shore Aircraft LLC and leased it back until the plane was retired in August 2008.
McElroy says the plane was maintained to Federal Aviation Administration regulations and had a valid certificate of airworthiness. After two incidents of smoke in plane in November 2002 and August 2006, the plane was cleared to fly.
Alaska had operated 26 MD-83 aircraft. It replaced them by August 2008 to transition to an all-Boeing 737 fleet.
Boeing, which bought McDonnell Douglas in 1997, says it’s ready to provide technical assistance to the Civil Aviation Authority on Nigeria.
