Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun appeared on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to address concerns and reassure key senators about the safety of Boeing’s planes.
This comes after a recent incident in which the door panel of a 737 Max 9 blew off during an Alaska Airlines flight over Portland, Oregon.
Boeing’s 737 Max 9 Grounding
Calhoun emphasized, “We fly safe planes,” and assured reporters that Boeing doesn’t put airplanes in the air unless they have 100% confidence in their safety. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had grounded all 171 Boeing 737 Max 9s indefinitely following the incident.
In response to the incident, the FAA announced on Wednesday evening that it had approved a thorough inspection and maintenance process for each grounded aircraft. Once inspections are completed, the aircraft will be eligible to return to service.
United Airlines Chief Operating Officer Toby Enqvist stated in a letter to employees that its 737 Max 9s are set to return to service on Sunday, following full inspections supervised by the FAA. Alaska Airlines also affirmed that their 65 Boeing 737 Max 9s would only return to service after rigorous inspections.
The FAA, however, specified that it would not issue a production expansion to Boeing for any Max aircraft, indicating that Boeing can continue production at the current monthly rate but cannot increase it until quality control issues are resolved.
Biden’s campaign is closely watching these developments, as United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, the two U.S. carriers operating the 737 Max 9, have faced flight cancellations.
Both airlines reported “loose hardware” issues in door plugs, prompting the FAA to instruct airlines to inspect door panels on another Boeing 737 jet, the 737-900ER.
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Boeing Faces Intensifying Scrutiny
Concerns about Boeing’s quality control were raised by an anonymous post, allegedly from a Boeing employee, suggesting that critical bolts were not installed on the blown-out door panel.
CBS News confirmed that 737 fuselages arrived at the Boeing plant with numerous problems requiring repairs by Spirit AeroSystems, the company responsible for fuselage construction.
Former Boeing senior manager turned whistleblower, Ed Pierson, expressed agreement with the post’s description of systems and processes and noted the fortunate outcome that the incident was not fatal.
Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth has demanded that the FAA deny safety waivers for Boeing’s future 737 Max 7 due to concerns about an anti-ice system that may cause engine nacelle issues.
In response to safety concerns, Boeing will pause production at its Renton factory on Thursday for a safety stand-down focused on improving quality.
Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci stated that Flight 1282, where the incident occurred, should never have happened, and multiple passengers have filed a class-action lawsuit against Boeing.
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