Boeing outlines to FAA its plan for addressing safety, quality control concerns

WASHINGTON — As summer travel season takes off, Boeing said it is committed to make flying safer.

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It comes after a mid-flight scare in January when a door plug flew off a months old Boeing 737 Max 9 plane.

Thursday, top officials from Boeing including its CEO met with Federal Aviation Administration leaders in Washington, D.C., for three hours about its roadmap for fixing safety and quality control issues.

Both groups agree that this is only the start of new safety efforts.

“Bottom line we will continue to make sure every airplane that comes off the line is safe and reliable,” said Mike Whitaker, FAA administrator.

Over the last three months, the company developed a new safety plan that aims to help identify hazards and reduce risks. The FAA required Boeing to provide an update on completed actions as well as mid- and long-term goals such as:

• Strengthening its Safety Management System, including employee safety reporting

• Simplifying processes and procedures and clarifying work instructions

• Enhanced supplier oversight

• Enhanced employee training and communication

• Increased internal audits of production system

FAA leaders will also meet with Boeing weekly to review its progress.

“We’ve increased our oversight and Boeing on its own has reduced production levels to make sure they have the resources they need,” Whitaker said.

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said the company has increased training and improved inspections. It is also adding more oversight in its factories. Calhoun announced those plans during Boeing’s annual shareholder meeting this month.

“We are deeply committed to doing everything that we can to make certain our regulators, our customers, employees and - most importantly and always - the flying public are 100 percent confident in Boeing,” he said.

Calhoun said the company is also listening to input from staff.

“We’re hosting quality stand-downs to hear directly from our employees, and we’re committed to acting on their feedback at every step,” he said.

Earlier in May, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told our Washington News Bureau he wants Boeing’s culture to focus on safety.

“All of the other economic concerns production, profitability, all of that has to follow from safety and quality, not the other way around,” he said.

FAA leaders said Boeing has also agreed to strengthen its anonymous reporting system so employees can speak freely about safety issues.

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