United Airlines says the Boeing plane explosion in Alaska cost it $200 million

United Airlines has blamed Boeing for a $200m (£161m) loss in profits in the first three months of this year.

The carrier was forced to ground its fleet of Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft for three weeks after the plane's cabin exploded on an Alaska Airlines flight in January.

United said that pushed it to a pre-tax loss of $164 million in the first quarter.

The airline said it “would have reported quarterly earnings” otherwise.

However, the loss was smaller than Wall Street expected and United shares rose more than 5% after the announcement.

United has 79 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft in its fleet, more than any of its competitors, second only to Alaska Airlines.

United and Alaska Airlines were forced to cancel thousands of flights as inspections were conducted in January before the US aviation regulator allowed the planes to resume flying.

Speaking at a conference in March, the company's chief financial officer, Brian West, said its customers like United Airlines were “supportive of everything we're trying to do to advance safety and quality in the industry.”

Referring specifically to payments owed due to the events of January 5, he added: “We continue to stand behind our customers with this responsibility.”

United told investors that its operations were also affected by delays in deliveries of Boeing aircraft.

“We have adjusted our fleet plan to better reflect the reality of what manufacturers can offer,” United CEO Scott Kirby said. He said in a statement.

Boeing recently faced new pressure after a whistleblower reported safety concerns about the manufacturing of some of its planes to US regulators.

Engineer Sam Salehpour accused Boeing of taking shortcuts in building its 787 and 777 aircraft.

He said he was “threatened with termination” after raising his concerns with his superiors.

But Boeing said these claims were “inaccurate” and added that it was confident its planes were safe.

Mr. Salehpour is scheduled to be the key witness at a US Senate hearing on April 17.

On January 5, the door seal of an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 exploded shortly after takeoff, terrifying passengers and forcing them to make an emergency return to the Portland, Oregon, airport.

The recent accident raised new questions about the safety of Boeing aircraft.

The company faced intense scrutiny after two 737 Max 8 crashes in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people.