The Alaska Airlines plane that suffered a midair door panel blowout was scheduled for maintenance later that very same day.
The New York Times reported the safety check was planned for the Boeing 737 Max plane after concerns were raised by technicians.
They cited pressurization system issues but the plane was kept in service, albeit with some restricts.
Alaska Airlines told the NYT the safety warnings did not meet the threshold to take an aircraft out of service.
The airline also confirmed that the Boeing 737 plane was set for a scheduled maintenance check later that evening.
In January, the door plug on Flight 1282 blew out not long after take-off from Portland when the plane reached about 16,000 feet.
The plane immediately turned around and landed back in Portland as oxygen masks sere deployed in the cabin.
The incident has put Boeing under increased scrutiny and the DOJ has now opened a criminal investigation.
The plane was still new, having been delivered to Alaska Airlines just weeks earlier.
It had completed just 510 flight hours.
“We remain confident in our maintenance and safety actions leading up to the incident,” Alaska Airlines said.
“We look forward to continuing our participation in a robust investigation.”
