Boeing CEO admits mistakes, says mid-air blowout ‘can never happen again’

WASHINGTON: Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun publicly acknowledged that the company had made mistakes following last week’s mid-air panel blowout on a full Alaska Airlines flight, saying it would work with regulators to make sure it “can never happen again”.

The statements are the first public acknowledgment of errors by the planemaker several days after the incident.

“We’re going to approach this number one acknowledging our mistake,” Calhoun told employees, according to an excerpt released by Boeing. “We’re going to approach it with 100% and complete transparency every step of the way.”

He also employees the company will make sure “ensure every next airplane that moves into the sky is in fact safe”. Calhoun praised the Alaska Airlines crew that swiftly moved to land the 737 MAX 9 plane on Friday after a panel was ripped off as it climbed out of Portland, Oregon, with a full complement of passengers on board.

It has refocused investor and regulatory attention on Boeing’s difficult last few years after a pair of crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed nearly 350 people.

The company has suffered from numerous production issues since the wider grounding of the 737 MAX family in March 2019 that lasted 20 months.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded a total of 171 planes on Saturday after the incident, causing numerous flight cancellations. The panel that blew off Alaska Air Flight 1282 replaces an optional exit door used by airlines that have denser seating configurations.

Alaska Airlines and the other US 737 MAX 9 operator, United Airlines, both said on Monday they had found loose parts on multiple grounded aircraft during preliminary checks, raising new concerns among industry experts about how Boeing's best-selling jet family is manufactured and its approval process.

A source told Reuters that United Airlines discovered that “closer to 10 than five” aircraft had loose parts used to fasten a panel that exists in lieu of an exit door on certain 737 MAX models.

The planes have not yet started official inspections of their grounded aircraft. Boeing was still working out inspection guidelines for to ensure safety lapses are fixed after airlines found several aircraft with loose parts.

The FAA said on Tuesday afternoon that Boeing was revising its instructions for inspections and maintenance, which the FAA must still approve before checks can begin on the 171 grounded planes. The FAA said it “will conduct a thorough review” and public safety will “determine the timeline” for returning the MAX to service.

Boeing shares fell 1.4% on Tuesday. – Reuters