NTSB: Problem of unauthorized work on Boeing’s 737 should have been identified earlier | World News
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If Boeing had learned from previous unapproved work, “this would have been noticed and could have been prevented,” Homendy said, adding that the board is also examining the FAA’s oversight of Boeing (Photo: Reuters).
The head of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said on Wednesday that the flight disaster involving Alaska Airlines’ Boeing 737 MAX 9 was completely avoidable because the aircraft manufacturer should have corrected the unauthorized production work long ago.
“This accident should never have happened. It should have been discovered years ago,” NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy told reporters on the second day of a hearing into the Jan. 5 incident in which a board of supervisors called off an Alaska Airlines flight after takeoff from Portland, Oregon.
“There have been countless Boeing and FAA audits, compliance reviews and compliance action plans where there was a history of unauthorized work and unauthorized removals,” she added.
Federal Aviation Administration official Brian Knaup said at the hearing that the agency has identified additional problems with unauthorized deportations by Boeing. “We have an open enforcement action against deportations,” Knaup said, adding that the FAA has increased investigations of hotline and whistleblower reports.
He defended the FAA’s oversight of Boeing before the accident. “We believe we had effective oversight,” Knaup said, but acknowledged that things have improved since the accident. “Safety culture is not a matter of compliance.”
He said the FAA has increased the number of unannounced audits and acquired dedicated staff space at Boeing’s 737 factory and at supplier Spirit AeroSystems, which Boeing is currently planning to acquire.
The NTSB’s Homendy added that there is no guarantee that the door panel problem will not recur.
Boeing has not produced any documentation of the removal of the 737 MAX 9’s door plug – a door-shaped piece of metal that covers an unused emergency exit – or its reinstallation during production, and still does not know which employees were involved. The plug was missing four key screws when it was delivered to Alaska Airlines, according to the NTSB.
Boeing did not immediately comment.
If Boeing had learned from previous, unapproved work, “this would have been noticed and could have been prevented,” Homendy said, adding that the committee is also closely examining the FAA’s oversight of Boeing.
“We have a lot of questions — information was known,” Homendy said of the FAA’s oversight of Boeing, citing deficiencies, missing and incorrect documents and incorrect policies that “have been an issue for years. This is nothing new.” After the incident, the FAA banned Boeing from expanding production beyond 38 planes per month and announced a 90-day review of the planemaker, requiring significant quality and manufacturing improvements before it would allow the planemaker to increase production.
FAA chief Michael Whitaker said in June that the agency was “too cautious” in monitoring Boeing. The FAA’s approach before the plane crash was “too focused on reviewing documents and not enough on inspections,” Whitaker added. The FAA has also increased the number of inspectors at Boeing and Spirit factories.
“We will continue our aggressive oversight of the company and ensure that it corrects its systemic production quality problems,” the FAA said on Wednesday.
The FAA announced Wednesday that 16 enforcement actions are pending against Boeing, eight of which have been initiated since the Alaska Airlines incident.
Last week, Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell and Senator Tammy Duckworth introduced legislation to review and strengthen the FAA’s safety management systems.
Homendy said the NTSB plans to conduct a safety culture survey among employees at Boeing’s plant in Renton, Washington, where the 737 MAX is built.
First published: 08 August 2024 | 9:42 am IS
