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The Federal Aviation Administration found multiple problems with Boeing's production practices after a six-week audit of Boeing over a door seal on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 that exploded on Jan. 5.
“The FAA has identified noncompliance issues in Boeing's manufacturing process control, parts handling and storage, and product monitoring,” the FAA said in a news release, but did not immediately provide further details.
separate a report It was launched before Door stop incident But the report released last month found “gaps” in Boeing's safety culture, including a disconnect between management and employees, and concerns among employees about retaliation for reporting safety concerns.
The FAA said the results of that audit and a separate report should be part of Boeing's quality improvement plan. Boeing has given 90 days to produce plan To fix quality problems.
Boeing said it is ready to do whatever is required to improve quality.
“We have a clear picture of what needs to be done. Transparency prevailed in all of these discussions,” the company statement said. “Boeing will develop a comprehensive action plan with measurable metrics that demonstrate the profound change the administrator has made.” [Michael] Whitaker and the FAA request. Our leadership team at Boeing is fully committed to meeting this challenge.
This is not the first such promise from Boeing since the Alaska Airlines incident. In January, Boeing CEO David Calhoun acknowledged that Boeing needed to improve its quality controls.
“Whatever final results are reached, Boeing is responsible for what happened,” Calhoun said in comments to the company's investors in January. “An event like this should not happen on a plane leaving our factory. We simply have to do what is best for our customers and their passengers.”
The audit also included Spirit AeroSystems, a major supplier to Boeing, which is building the fuselage for the Boeing 737 Max 9, among other items. Without providing details, the FAA said it found multiple instances where the two companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.
Boeing had owned the operations that now make up most of Spirit, but spun it off as a separate company in 2005. Boeing revealed on Friday that it was in negotiations to… Maybe re-acquire the soul.
Asked to comment on the report, a Spirit spokesperson responded: “We are in contact with Boeing and the FAA regarding appropriate corrective actions.”
More than two dozen Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors are participating in an audit of Boeing's 737 plant in Renton, Washington, FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker told members of Congress during a hearing last month. The agency is not the only government body looking into Boeing's quality issues.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident on an Alaska Airlines flight. A preliminary report into the incident found that the four screws needed to hold the door plug in place were missing It disappeared when the plane left the Boeing factory Last October to be delivered to Alaska Airlines. The NTSB has not yet placed blame on the missing screws.
in addition to, The Ministry of Justice retracted Whether deficiencies found in the aftermath Door plug exploded On a 737 MAX flight last month, A Deferred prosecution agreement Which Boeing signed with the government three years ago after two MAX aircraft Fatal accidentsAccording to a person familiar with the investigation. This investigation could expose Boeing to criminal liability.
The final results of this audit will likely be the backbone of future congressional hearings that Boeing could take over.
Next Wednesday, Jennifer Homendy, head of the National Transportation Safety Board, will provide an update on the investigation into Alaska Flight 1282 to the Senate committee that oversees aviation. The chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee said hearings involving Boeing executives will be held after senators hear the latest results of the investigation.
This story has been updated to reflect additional reporting and context.
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