FAA is auditing Boeing's 737 Max 9 production

CNN
—

The Federal Aviation Administration announced it will audit the Boeing 737 Max 9 production line and its suppliers, with a focus on ensuring quality control.

The announcement, which the FAA called a “significant action,” came just a week after a dramatic in-flight accident on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in which a part called a door plug was blown off the side of the plane.

The audit will also assess “safety risks associated with delegated authority and quality oversight,” but FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said in a statement that “the time has come to reconsider.”

Whittaker also mentioned the possibility of outsourcing some oversight.

“The FAA is considering the use of an independent third party to oversee Boeing's inspection and quality systems,” Whitaker said in a statement.

Boeing said in a statement that it welcomes the additional scrutiny.

Boeing said it “welcomes the FAA's announcement and will cooperate fully and transparently with regulators.” “We support any action that strengthens quality and safety and are taking action across our entire production system.”

The announcement did not say when the 737 Max 9 would return to service. Alaska Airlines and United Airlines have 171 of their aircraft remaining grounded in the U.S. as they await updated emergency testing guidance from the FAA.

The lack of a schedule from the FAA raises the possibility that the plane will be grounded for some time until regulators can confirm it is safe to fly.Alaska Airlines said: In a statement Wednesday, All 737-9 Max flights have been canceled until Saturday, January 13th. This means approximately 110 to 150 flights per day. Future operations have not yet been announced. United Airlines is also canceling hundreds of flights a day due to the grounding.

Boeing CEO David Calhoun acknowledged Tuesday at an all-employee safety meeting that the company made “mistakes” related to the Alaska Airlines crash.

“We're going to admit we made a mistake and work on this No. 1,” Calhoun told his staff Tuesday, according to sources. Video of the meeting provided by Boeing to CNN. “We will approach it with 100% and complete transparency every step of the way.”

On Wednesday, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun acknowledged in an interview with CNBC that the door plug failure was a “terrible escape” from the company's manufacturing and quality control processes.

When asked what exactly happened, Calhoun told CNBC: That is wrong and should never happen. ”

In the interview, Calhoun said he was “confident” in the FAA's continued work to “inspect each aircraft” and “make sure they are compliant with our design, which is a proven design.” “I have it,” he emphasized.

NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy told CNN's Poppy Harlow on “CNN This Morning” on Wednesday that the FAA and Boeing “have no prior knowledge of how it happened before taking steps to unground the plane.” We really need information.”

“We recommend that these vehicles not be returned to service until we fully understand why this happened,” Homendy said. “That tells us what inspections we need to do and what repairs we need to make.”

Boeing officials told CNN that Boeing believes the “error in question” was introduced into the aircraft's manufacturing supply chain.

Over the past five years, Boeing has repeatedly faced quality and safety problems with its aircraft, leading to long-term groundings of some jets and halted deliveries of others.

The design of the 737 MAX was found to be the cause of two fatal accidents. One occurred in Indonesia in October 2018 and the other in Ethiopia in March 2019. Combined, the two crashes killed all 346 people on board the two flights, resulting in a 20-month long stay. The grounding of the company's best-selling jets has cost the airline more than $21 billion.

Internal communications released during the 737 Max grounding show one employee describing the plane as “designed by clowns and overseen by clowns and monkeys.”

Late last month, Boeing told airlines to inspect all 737 Max jets for possible loose bolts in the rudder system after airlines discovered potential problems with key parts on two planes. requested that it be done.

Its quality and engineering problems extend beyond the 737. Boeing also had to halt deliveries of the 787 Dreamliner for about a year starting in 2021 and twice in 2023 due to quality concerns cited by the FAA. A United Airlines 777 was also grounded after an engine failure sent pieces of the engine flying into houses and onto the ground below.

This story has been updated with additional development and background.