The Federal Aviation Administration announced that its 737 MAX manufacturing audit of Boeing Co. and supplier Spirit AeroSystems found multiple instances in which the companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.
The FAA also announced that it found “legal violations in Boeing’s manufacturing process controls, parts handling and storage, and product management.” The agency said Monday it provided companies with a summary of its findings in completed audits, but did not release them publicly because they are part of an ongoing investigation.
Spirit AeroSystems, which makes the MAX aircraft, said it is “in communication with Boeing and the FAA regarding appropriate corrective actions.” Boeing had no immediate comment.
Boeing confirmed Friday that it is in talks to buy Spirit AeroSystems, a former subsidiary it spun off in 2005.
The FAA’s audit was prompted by an airborne emergency on January 5 when Alaska Airlines’ new 737 MAX 9 aircraft lost a door plug at 16,000 feet. The FAA previously barred Boeing from expanding production of its 737 aircraft, saying in January that “the quality assurance issues we have seen to date are unacceptable.”
Last week, FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said Boeing would address “systemic quality control issues” within 90 days after a daylong meeting with CEO Dave Calhoun on Feb. 27. He said there is a need to develop a comprehensive plan for the
“Boeing needs to commit to real fundamental improvements,” Whitaker said last week. “We will hold them accountable every step of the way, with a mutual understanding of milestones and expectations.”
Calhoun said in a statement last week that Boeing’s management is “fully committed” to addressing the FAA’s concerns and developing a plan.
Whittaker said in January that the purpose of the audit was to “look at the systems, how the inspections are done, where they are done, how the interactions with suppliers are done, how handovers are done. “We need to look into the entire testing process,” he told Reuters. Really understand how it works and where the flaws are. ”
Boeing has been scrambling to explain and strengthen its safety procedures since the midair crash that led to the FAA grounding the MAX 9 for several weeks in January.
Whitaker said Boeing’s plan should incorporate the results of the FAA’s production line audit and findings from an expert review panel report released last week.
One of the key issues in the investigation of this incident will be determining what manufacturing documentation was used to allow the opening and closing of the door plugs while working on the airplane.
Last month, Boeing abruptly fired Ed Clark, head of the 737 MAX program, as part of a management shake-up.
Earlier, a bipartisan group of lawmakers asked the FAA whether it had found “evidence of persistent quality control deficiencies on any of Boeing’s production lines.”
The FAA has criticized Boeing for a series of quality problems over the years. Boeing paid a $6.6 million fine to the FAA in 2021 as part of a settlement over years of lapses in quality and safety oversight.
In December, the FAA asked airlines to inspect bolts in the rudder control systems on Max planes for loose bolts after airlines discovered bolts and nuts were missing during routine maintenance.
A preliminary report released last month by the National Safety Transportation Board found that the door panel that flew off the Max 9 appeared to be missing four key bolts.
