Boeing has been under intense scrutiny and pressure since a panel on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 blew off shortly after takeoff on January 5th. The episode raised new questions about the quality of the aircraft the company would produce in the coming years. Two Max 8 planes crashed, killing about 350 people.
Interviews with more than 20 current and former employees revealed longstanding concerns about quality, especially as pressure mounts to continue production at the company's factories.
Boeing currently faces immense challenges as it seeks changes to improve the quality of its products and regain the trust of lawmakers, regulators, airlines and the public.
Here are some points.
The quality issues go back many years.
For years, current and former Boeing employees said it felt like quality was put on the back burner to keep planes moving through the factory.
Former and current Boeing employees described alarming practices in interviews, including attempts to circumvent quality procedures. One is “inspector shopping,” where employees seek out inspectors who will approve their work with little resistance.
Boeing does not approve of inspector hoarding and said it has increased the number of quality inspectors for commercial aircraft by 20% since 2019. The number of inspections per aircraft also increased during this period, the company said.
Even before the two Max crashes in 2018 and 2019, Boeing was trying to catch up with its biggest rival, Airbus. Airbus had introduced new, more fuel-efficient planes several years before the Max began flying. After the crashes, Airbus stepped up its momentum, putting pressure on Boeing to catch up if its Max planes are approved to return to service at the end of 2020.
The company lost thousands of experienced employees.
Boeing's workforce has experienced significant turnover due to the coronavirus pandemic. The company lost thousands of experienced employees through attrition, buyouts, retirements and resignations.
Boeing has since refilled its workforce, but current and former employees say much of the organizational knowledge has been lost and the workforce is less experienced than before. Boeing's suppliers are facing similar problems, struggling to produce parts at the pace Boeing wants.
The company faces intense scrutiny.
Since January 5th, the company has faced a wave of negative publicity. The regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration, has stepped up inspections of the company's factories. And customers are criticizing Boeing.
A six-week FAA audit of Boeing's 737 Max production documented dozens of deficiencies in quality control practices. The agency gave the company until the end of May to address quality control issues. The Department of Justice has also launched a criminal investigation into the company.
Boeing says it is making a number of changes.
Boeing announced several steps to improve quality, including additional inspections at its Renton, Washington, factory, which assembles Max planes.
It also announced that it will no longer accept Max bodies from its main supplier, Spirit AeroSystems, based in Wichita, Kansas, which still needs work. Previously, defects that could be fixed later were tolerated to meet tight production schedules.
The company also said its employees have been asking for more training since January 5, and it is working to meet that need, including adding on-site training this month.
And on Monday, Boeing announced major changes to its management team. CEO Dave Calhoun, who took over in January 2020 vowing to improve the company's safety culture, will step down at the end of the year. Stan Deal, head of Boeing's commercial aircraft division, is retiring immediately. and Board Chairman Larry Kellner has resigned from his position and will not seek re-election to the Board.
