The FAA has found several instances where Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements, after a six-week audit prompted by an incident with an Alaska Airlines’ Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft in January.
The 737 Max 9 aircraft lost a door plug from the fuselage minutes after taking off from Portland International Airport, Oregon on January 5, causing a window and chunk of fuselage to tear away from the aircraft. The blowout, which occurred at 16,000ft resulted in minor injuries for passengers.
The FAA audit identified non-compliance issues in Boeing’s manufacturing process control, parts handling and storage, and product control. The audit is part of the FAA’s ongoing investigation into the incident and its causes.
At a meeting at FAA Headquarters in Washington, DC, last week, FAA administrator Mike Whitaker told Boeing’s CEO and other senior leaders that the company must address the audit’s findings as part of a corrective action plan to fix systemic quality-control issues. The plan must also address the findings from the expert review panel report that examined Boeing’s safety culture. The FAA has given Boeing 90 days to outline its action plan.
The FAA has halted production expansion of the Boeing 737 MAX and has said it is exploring the use of a third party to conduct independent reviews of quality systems.
This week Boeing confirmed it is in talks to acquire Spirit. Boeing said, “We have been working closely with Spirit AeroSystems and its leadership to strengthen the quality of the commercial airplanes that we build together. We confirm that our collaboration has resulted in preliminary discussions about making Spirit AeroSystems a part of Boeing again.
We believe that the reintegration of Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems’ manufacturing operations would further strengthen aviation safety, improve quality and serve the interests of our customers, employees, and shareholders.”
Spirit was formed in 2005 when Boeing sold its Wichita division to a private investment firm.
