Boeing under scrutiny. Safety shortcuts in 787 Dreamliner production raise alarms
11 April 2024 15:23
The producer of the iconic Dreamliners is facing more trouble. - There is a serious defect in the aeroplanes that the production is fixing by force, - alerts one of the aviation giant's employees. It's another investigation regarding the safety of Boeing's machines and another huge blemish on its reputation.
The whistleblower, Sam Salehpour, a Boeing engineer, accused the company, in the process of manufacturing 777 and 787 Dreamliner aeroplanes, of wanting to speed up the work, skipping key safety steps. In his opinion, this could lead to catastrophic failures. – I saw people jumping onto parts of the machine to fit them in – the man quoted by Reuters said.
Salehpour explains that it is about a small element of the fuselage, and the problem concerns even a thousand aeroplanes. It is hard to detect during the inspection of the machine's receipt.
Intimidation within Boeing's ranks. Will there be more witnesses?
After the man reported the irregularities to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is responsible for safety in American airspace, colleagues were supposed to intimidate him. However, the investigation has started, and the FAA encourages other witnesses to come forward.
The U.S. Department of Justice also conducts the investigation, among others. It examines whether Boeing violated the 2021 agreement, which protected the aeroplane manufacturer from charges after two fatal crashes of B737 MAX in 2018 and 2019. Nearly 350 people died in those crashes.
The list of accidents and serious defects gets longer
Last month, the media reported more "serious defects" in Boeing's machines. The American airline United Airlines grounded nearly ten Boeing 737 MAX 9 aeroplanes after one of them lost a panel from its fuselage shortly after taking off from the Portland airport. During the inspection, "loose bolts" in many panels of those aeroplanes were found.
The list of problems, incidents, defects, and investigations is getting longer, and the shares of the American manufacturer are falling. The current CEO of Boeing, Dave Calhoun, announced that he will step down before the end of the year. As CNN notes, the new leadership of the giant will have a lot of work and a lot to repair.
