The screen showed an email from Alaska Airlines about a baggage claim for the flight, based on Bates’ photos.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed at a briefing on Sunday that one phone was found on the side of a road and another in a yard.
The people have handed in both of the devices, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy told reporters.
“We’ll look through those and then return them” to passengers, Homendy said. “It also helps in telling us, ‘Are we looking in the right area?’”
US grounded Boeing 737 MAX jets, what airlines, regulators followed suit?
US grounded Boeing 737 MAX jets, what airlines, regulators followed suit?
Bates couldn’t be reached for comment. The NTSB had no immediate comment. ABC News reported earlier that the NTSB confirmed Bates’s account.
The fuselage panel that blew off the plane was later discovered in the backyard of a Portland-based teacher.
Apple says on its website that iPhone or its battery can be damaged if dropped. In this case, the only part that appeared broken in Bates’ post was the charger cord; even the screen was intact.
The end of the cord was still plugged into the phone, but the rest of the cable was detached.
Flight 1282 was forced to turn back minutes after take-off, when the panel broke loose from the fuselage. None of the 171 passengers aboard the Max 9 jet was seriously injured.
It landed safely back in Portland about 20 minutes after take-off, having reached more than 4,900 metres in altitude before turning around.