Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's company, Reliance Industries Ltd., operates a Boeing Co. jet similar to the one involved in an alarming incident during an Alaska Airlines flight. The specific type, a Boeing 737-9 Max variant, has come under intense scrutiny worldwide after a section of its fuselage blew out mid-flight last Friday.
Reliance Industries, under the leadership of Asia's wealthiest individual, is the sole corporation owning this variant of Boeing jet with a sealed mid-cabin exit door, as revealed by flight data provider Cirium.
Though no fatalities occurred during the Alaska Airlines incident, it has sparked widespread concern about the safety of this particular aircraft model and raised questions about Boeing's overall safety record. Consequently, multiple airlines have grounded their entire fleets of similar jets. In response, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an order to temporarily halt certain Max 9 aircraft for inspection.
Reliance Industries reportedly added the Boeing 737-9 Max to its corporate fleet last year, identified by its registration as T7-LOTUS and adorned with Reliance branding.
When approached for comment, a Reliance spokesperson did not immediately respond. India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation has instructed airlines to conduct inspections on Boeing's 737-8 Max jets – another model – and complete a one-time inspection by Sunday.
In addition to the Boeing 737-9 Max, Reliance possesses various other aircraft in its corporate fleet, including two Embraer SA ERJ 145 planes and one Airbus SE A319. Additionally, the company maintains two helicopters, a Dauphin and a Sikorsky, in its hangar.
Mukesh Ambani's net worth stands at $97.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Aside from Alaska Air, United Airlines Holdings Inc., and Panama's Copa Airlines SA, a few other carriers operate similar jets with the mid-cabin door sealed, such as flydubai, Aeromexico, and Air Tanzania. Alaska Air, United Airlines, and Copa have already grounded numerous jets of this type from their fleets.
Boeing's 737-9 Max represents the longest single-aisle variant of its aircraft. Its modular fuselage design allows for flexible installation of emergency doors, adapting to different seating capacities and configurations within the cabin.
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