Grounded Boeing planes won’t return to service until they are safe, official says
US transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg has said no grounded Boeing Max aircraft would return to service until they are safe as the plane maker’s CE disclosed that the blowout on a flight operated by Alaska Airlines was the consequence of a “quality escape”. Buttigieg said on Wednesday that there was no timeline for grounded 737 Max 9s to resume flight. He added he spoke to Boeing CE Dave Calhoun and told him the company must establish 100% confidence in its planes. The jet that lost a section of its fuselage in flight last week was the result of a “quality escape”, Calhoun told CNBC — using industry jargon for a manufacturing mistake. “Mistake” is the word the chief executive used a day earlier speaking at a company-wide safety meeting at Boeing’s factory in Renton, Washington, where it builds the 737 Max. The meeting was broadcast to employees worldwide but closed to the media. “We’re going to approach this, number one, acknowledging our mistake,” Calhoun said, according to excerpts shared by the company. “We are going to work with the [National Transportation Safety Board] who is investigating the accident itself to find out what the cause is . . . I trust every step they take.” While there were no serious injuries among the 171 passengers and six crew, Calhoun said all he could think about was “whoever was supposed to be in the seat next to that hole” when he saw the images. The US FAA grounded 171 Boeing 737 Max 9s on Saturday. The door panel that blew out during the Alaska Airlines flight was later found in the garden of an Oregon physics teacher. United Airlines and Alaska Airlines on Monday found bolts in the plugged doors of some of their Max 9s that needed tightening. Boeing issued instructions to airlines on how to inspect the door inserts on their other Max 9s, but the FAA on Tuesday said those technical instructions were only “the initial version” and were being revised “because of feedback”. “The safety of the flying public, not speed, will determine the timeline for returning the Boeing 737-9 Max to service,” the FAA said.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2024-01-11/general/grounded-boeing-planes-won2019t-return-to-service-until-they-are-safe-official-says
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Grounded Boeing planes won’t return to service until they are safe, official says
US transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg has said no grounded Boeing Max aircraft would return to service until they are safe as the plane maker’s CE disclosed that the blowout on a flight operated by Alaska Airlines was the consequence of a “quality escape”. Buttigieg said on Wednesday that there was no timeline for grounded 737 Max 9s to resume flight. He added he spoke to Boeing CE Dave Calhoun and told him the company must establish 100% confidence in its planes. The jet that lost a section of its fuselage in flight last week was the result of a “quality escape”, Calhoun told CNBC — using industry jargon for a manufacturing mistake. “Mistake” is the word the chief executive used a day earlier speaking at a company-wide safety meeting at Boeing’s factory in Renton, Washington, where it builds the 737 Max. The meeting was broadcast to employees worldwide but closed to the media. “We’re going to approach this, number one, acknowledging our mistake,” Calhoun said, according to excerpts shared by the company. “We are going to work with the [National Transportation Safety Board] who is investigating the accident itself to find out what the cause is . . . I trust every step they take.” While there were no serious injuries among the 171 passengers and six crew, Calhoun said all he could think about was “whoever was supposed to be in the seat next to that hole” when he saw the images. The US FAA grounded 171 Boeing 737 Max 9s on Saturday. The door panel that blew out during the Alaska Airlines flight was later found in the garden of an Oregon physics teacher. United Airlines and Alaska Airlines on Monday found bolts in the plugged doors of some of their Max 9s that needed tightening. Boeing issued instructions to airlines on how to inspect the door inserts on their other Max 9s, but the FAA on Tuesday said those technical instructions were only “the initial version” and were being revised “because of feedback”. “The safety of the flying public, not speed, will determine the timeline for returning the Boeing 737-9 Max to service,” the FAA said.<br/>
