WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) questioned whether the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) oversight of Boeing went far enough to make certain that the company is making jets that are safe to operate in a letter to Administrator Michael Whitaker.
The letter follows an incident aboard an Alaska Airlines flight in which a panel disconnected from the airplane after it had taken off, leaving a gaping hole in the side. The FAA grounded all 171 of Boeing's 737 Max 9, the model that experienced the malfunction, following the incident, pending inspections. Both Alaska and United Airlines, the only two carriers that use the 737 Max 9, reported loose bolts and other problems in the panel doors of other Max 9 aircraft.
In the letter, Cantwell turned to scrutinizing the FAA's handling of Boeing. In a 2023 letter to the Senator, former Acting Administrator Billy Nolen said the agency was already auditing several different areas of the company's production process after Cantwell expressed concern and requested they perform nearly a dozen different audits.
"It appears that FAA's oversight processes have not been effective in ensuring that Boeing produces airplanes that are in condition for safe operation, as required by law and FAA regulations," Cantwell wrote.
Cantwell, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, expressed concerns with the FAA's audit process, saying, "It appears that there may be ways for manufacturers to avoid audit accountability."
She noted that manufacturers are notified of an audit 50 days in advance, giving them time to "get their house in order" before the FAA has a chance to evaluate whether they are out of compliance with regulations in any areas. She also questioned the depth with which audit teams review how faithfully manufacturers follow their own procedures.
In the letter, Cantwell claimed Boeing eliminated 900 quality inspection positions several years ago, which resulted in the loss of "thousands of quality inspections" on each airplane. Cantwell said the loss of inspectors appeared contrary to the FAA's requirements. Aviation analyst John Nance also told KING 5 that Boeing eliminated line inspectors and allowed employees who put the planes together to inspect their own work.
However, a Boeing spokesperson said Jan. 24 that the cuts never happened. A senior Boeing quality executive told the Seattle Times in 2019 that the company planned to cut inspector jobs, change how it conducted quality checks and integrate technology and monitoring into its secondary inspection process. However, Boeing said it didn't cut the inspector roles and since 2019 has grown its quality team to increase inspections per aircraft.
On Jan. 12, the FAA announced that they would begin monitoring Boeing's production and increase its oversight over the company after the incident aboard the 737 Max 9, in addition to their parts suppliers. The agency also announced that it would consider moving inspection responsibilities to a third party rather than allowing company employees to perform those inspections.
Nance said that third-party oversight is beneficial, as those doing the work are simply serving those who hired them and the traveling public. He added he can't imagine any official pushback from Boeing, especially since the situation that led to this could have been "much worse."
In a statement, Cantwell welcomed the FAA's announcement, going on to say, "The public deserves a comprehensive evaluation of Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems to strengthen production quality and aviation safety."
The incident on the Alaska plane is the latest in a string of mishaps for Boeing that began in 2018, with the first of two crashes of Max 8 planes in Indonesia and Ethiopia — and more than four months apart — that killed a total of 346 people.