Two Senate committees are scheduled to scrutinize Boeing’s safety culture and new whistleblower allegations on Wednesday, as the company remains under the microscope.
Boeing was in the spotlight in January when a door plug on one of its 737 Max 9 planes flew off shortly after takeoff on an Alaska Airlines flight.
No passengers were killed, but Boeing, once immune to impeachment in Washington, now faces multiple investigations from regulators and lawmakers.
No company officials are expected to attend the second consecutive hearing by senators to investigate recent Boeing safety deficiencies.
The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations invites Boeing CEO David Calhoun to testify about the company’s “broken safety culture,” along with a whistleblower who raised new allegations of safety concerns and corporate retaliation. did.
But the embattled executive announced last month that he would resign by the end of the year, but has not promised to appear in court and is not on the list of witnesses.
Subcommittee Chairman Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) told The Hill: “Tomorrow’s hearing will surface truly shocking allegations of failure, safety practices, culture, light and retaliation. That should shock not only companies but the conscience of the American people.”
“The whistleblower will have the courage to come forward, and I hope Dave Calhoun will do the same, if not tomorrow, then at some point in the future,” the senator added.
The whistleblower is Boeing quality engineer Sam Salepour. Salepour told The New York Times, which first reported the complaint last week, that parts of the 787 Dreamliner’s fuselage are not connected properly and could wear out over time and break during flight. he said.
“As far as I’m concerned at this point, the entire fleet around the world needs attention,” Salepour told NBC News. “The caveat is that you need to check for gaps and see if there is a chance of early failure.”
Salepour’s lawyers say he was sidelined, excluded and threatened after he raised concerns that Boeing had “started taking shortcuts” to “relieve bottlenecks in 787 production.” As a result, “fatigue failure could occur prematurely without warning, creating a dangerous situation for the aircraft.” Aircraft with potential for catastrophic accidents and passenger deaths. ” According to the letter Blumenthal and Ranking Member Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) to Calhoun last month.
“Boeing understands the subcommittee’s important oversight responsibilities and is cooperating with this investigation. We have offered to provide documentation, testimony, and technical briefings, and we are consulting with the subcommittee on next steps.” ,” a Boeing spokesperson told The Hill.
The Senate Commerce Committee, which oversees Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), will also hold its own hearing Wednesday morning. The Commerce hearing will begin at 10 a.m. EDT, and the subcommittee hearing will begin at 11:15 a.m. EDT.
Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Ranking Member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) invited a panel of aviation experts to discuss Boeing’s “insufficient” and ” The company released a report in February criticizing its safety culture and calling for major changes. .
“Procedures and training are complex and constantly changing, creating employee confusion, especially across different workplaces and employee groups,” the report said. The experts also said they found a “lack of awareness of safety-related indicators” at all levels within the company.
The report lists 50 recommendations to improve Boeing’s safety and recommends the company develop a plan to address the issues within six months to share with the FAA, which is also investigating the company. did. The hearing will explore these findings and recommendations in more detail.
Both senators have signaled a desire to increase oversight of the airline giants, and the hearing is likely to determine the direction of future moves.
No one from Boeing is scheduled to testify at the hearing, but they are working hard on Capitol Hill. Boeing told The Hill that it has contacted all 535 members of Congress at least twice since the Alaska Airlines incident in January, and has also contacted “the Senate Commerce Committee office, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee office, and other priorities.” He said he had made “additional contact with the office.”
Boeing has relied on a vast network of in-house lobbyists and hired guns to navigate its relationships. Boeing spent more than $14.4 million on federal lobbying efforts last year and hired more than 100 lobbyists at 17 companies, including five former members of Congress.
Lobbying disclosure for the first quarter of 2024, covering the post-accident period, is expected on Saturday. A new report details the various issues and government agencies that Boeing lobbied for after the crash, and how much the airline giant spent on those efforts.
Boeing still collects billions of dollars in government contracts each year and has a robust commercial business. However, recent high-profile accidents, including fatal 737 Max 8 crashes in 2018 and 2019, have raised questions about the future of this iconic brand.
Earlier this month, Boeing paid Alaska Airlines $160 million in compensation for the January explosion that grounded its 737 Max 9 planes across the United States. Several passengers also sued Boeing and Alaska Airlines over the incident.
The Justice Department last month said Boeing could not find records requested by the National Transportation Safety Board related to work done on door plugs on 737 Max 9 planes prior to the Alaska Airlines crash. A criminal investigation has been launched against Boeing.
Boeing says it is committed to being “as transparent as possible” while focusing on “safety and quality.” But no Boeing representatives are scheduled to testify before the committee Wednesday, so the clarity lawmakers are seeking may be limited, at least for now.
“Probably not tomorrow, but at some point in the future, we will hear from Boeing,” Blumenthal said, adding that “Boeing has failed in its safety practices and culture and that employees who have filed legitimate complaints will be contacted by Boeing.” This is a very reprehensible retaliation.”
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