Stranded in Davos: Antony Blinken Is Stuck in Switzerland, Compliments of a Boeing 737 Oxygen Leak

By Susie Moore | 1:10 PM on January 17, 2024

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It's that time of year again: Our betters are in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum annual meeting, devising ways to tell us what to drive, eat, and cook with. All manner of bigwigs are in attendance, including our own Secretary of State, Antony Blinken.

Unfortunately, Blinken's plans to return to the U.S. hit some turbulence: It seems the Boeing 737 he was set to take back to the homeland has sprung a leak. I'm not sure exactly what that's a metaphor for, but surely, it's something.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was unable to fly home from Davos as scheduled on Wednesday, after an issue with his government-owned Boeing plane forced a change of plans.
After boarding the modified military Boeing 737, Blinken and his entourage were informed that a previously detected oxygen leak could not be remedied, rendering the jet unsafe to fly, Bloomberg reported.

What's a stranded top diplomat to do under such circumstances? Blinken, it appears, was left to wait on a replacement aircraft, while most of his aides and the press booked commercial alternatives. (No word yet on the impact any of these arrangements may have had on footprints of the C variety.)

Blinken awaited a smaller government jet being sent to Zurich from Brussels, while most of his aides and the traveling press booked commercial flights to Washington DC.

This latest hiccup comes amid a number of issues for the aircraft manufacturer.

Boeing's safety record and production processes have been under scrutiny since a panel tore off an Alaska Airlines jet while in flight near Portland, Oregon on January 5, leaving a hole on the side of the Boeing 737 MAX 9 plane.
...
Boeing shares are under further pressure this week after Wells Fargo analysts downgraded the stock on Tuesday.
The Wells Fargo report, entitled 'FAA audit opens up a whole new can of worms,' citing the FAA's plan to review Boeing's inspections of the 737 MAX 9 planes before allowing them to fly again.
'Given Boeing's recent track record, and greater incentive for the FAA to find problems, we think the odds of a clean audit are low,' the analysts said.
'The FAA's audit is limited to Max 9 for now, but it's feasible that findings could expand the scope to other Max models sharing common parts.'
The FAA said on Wednesday that inspections of an initial group of 40 Boeing 737 MAX 9 airplanes have been completed, a key hurdle to eventually ungrounding the planes.
The FAA grounded 171 MAX 9 planes on January 6 pending approval of inspections and maintenance requirements.

Undoubtedly, Blinken's replacement ride will see him safely returned to the U.S. in due time. Then he can get back to applauding State Department employees who feel like walking off the job because they can't abide the Biden administration's support of Israel.

SEE: WATCH: Blinken's Remarks About Fed Walkout Against Admin Over Israel Are Unbelievable