Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun has pledged that the company will learn from the recent incident involving an Alaska Airlines flight. The aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing after a part of the plane's main body detached mid-flight. Calhoun made this promise during a town hall meeting with the contractors responsible for building the fuselage of the 737 MAX 9. Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is still investigating whether bolts were installed on the door plug that blew out.
The NTSB Chair, Jennifer Homendy, confirmed that their on-scene work in Portland has been completed. The door plug and its components have been moved back to Washington, D.C. However, there is still much work to be done to determine the cause of the incident. Homendy will be briefing House lawmakers and senators in closed-door sessions to discuss the investigation.
The scope of the NTSB investigation includes examining the manufacturing process and structure of the door plug. The Boeing fuselage in question was produced by Spirit Aerosystems in Malaysia, then passed through a supplier factory in Kansas before reaching Boeing in Washington. This multi-step process has raised concerns about the assembly of these planes and whether outsourcing may have contributed to the incident. Senator John Tester has suggested that the problem could be systemic and needs to be thoroughly investigated.
Homendy assures that the NTSB's investigation will consider every aspect from manufacturer to delivery, as well as any subsequent work conducted by airlines on the aircraft. The FAA has grounded all 737 Boeing Max 9s until they are deemed safe to fly. The NTSB's mission is to determine the cause of the incident, learn from it, and prevent similar occurrences in the future.
Homendy also commended the FAA for their regulatory efforts and highlighted the strong safety partnership between the NTSB and the FAA. The NTSB's primary goal is to ensure safety and they will not rush through the investigation process. The focus is on obtaining accurate information to arrive at appropriate solutions.
As lawmakers scramble to reach a deal to avert a partial government shutdown, the potential impact on the NTSB's investigation is a significant concern. Should a shutdown occur, the investigation would be halted, even though the grounded planes are seen as no longer posing an immediate risk to life or property. A long-term continuing resolution would also present challenges for the agency's operations.
The NTSB remains committed to their meticulous and comprehensive investigation, conducted by highly skilled workers, to determine the cause of the incident and ensure the safety of future flights.
