FAA chief says Boeing safety culture reforms may take years

The head of the Federal Aviation Administration told a U.S. House subcommittee on Tuesday that safety culture improvements at Boeing may take three to five years to complete. "It is not a six-month program - it is a three-year to five-year program," FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said at a two-hour hearing, adding he has spoken to Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg and the company's board of directors about the need for safety culture reforms. He said Boeing has made significant improvement in the short term. "On culture it is a long-term project .... There is progress but they are not where they need to be." Congress is holding two days of hearings on Boeing and the company's safety turnaround efforts with a Senate panel taking up the issue on Wednesday. In June, Whitaker said the agency was "too hands off" in oversight of Boeing before the January mid-air emergency in a new Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 and faulted its prior audits. Boeing faces Justice Department and FAA probes into the Alaska incident. Boeing has no choice but to make improvements, Whitaker said. "There has to be culture change or they won't be able to go back to producing aircraft at the level they want," Whitaker said, adding the planemaker plans to hold a new safety training program.<br/>