New Delhi, March 13, 2024: In response to a recent US government audit, Boeing on Tuesday announced that it would work closely with employees who have breached company manufacturing protocols so that they understand the instructions better. This assurance came in a memo from Stan Deal, the president of Boeing’s commercial plane division, outlining the steps being taken to rectify quality lapses.
The memo comes shortly after the Federal Aviation Administration carried out a six-week evaluation of the company’s manufacturing processes for the 737 Max jetliner after a panel blew off one of the planes during an Alaska Airlines flight on January 5.
The FAA scrutinized 89 production aspects at Boeing’s Renton, Washington facility, revealing 33 failures, primarily attributed to workers deviating from approved procedures, according to a source familiar with the report. These findings, though not publicly disclosed, were reported earlier by The New York Times.
Stan acknowledged the complexity and frequent alterations in Boeing‘s safety procedures. He assured employees of efforts to simplify processes and address panel recommendations.
Regarding the Alaska Airlines incident, where a warning light related to the plane’s pressurization system was noted before the panel detachment, the airline defended its maintenance plan as aligned with established protocols. Mechanics had encountered the warning light on previous flights without identifying a specific issue.
An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) indicated missing bolts from a repair job at Boeing’s factory as a probable cause of the incident. Concurrently, Boeing is under scrutiny from the Justice Department to ascertain if recent incidents, including the Alaska Airlines blowout, violate terms of a settlement from 2021 related to previous Max jet crashes.
Boeing reported subdued jetliner orders and deliveries for February, reflecting heightened FAA scrutiny. This sluggish performance, observed in a context where European competitor Airbus outpaced Boeing in deliveries, is causing frustration among airlines like Southwest, which might need to scale back expansion plans due to delayed Max jet deliveries according to the reports published in www.financialexpress.com .
Boeing’s stock, based in Arlington, Virginia, experienced a decline of over 4 percent on Tuesday, mirroring concerns amid ongoing challenges.
