The aircraft manufacturer Boeing is threatened with further trouble: after a piece of fuselage broke out of a 737 Max during a flight, the US Department of Justice is now also investigating. The affected airline wants to cooperate.
The incident made headlines: At the beginning of January, a fuselage fragment broke out of the plane on a Boeing 737-8 Max flight. The US Department of Justice is now also investigating the case. The affected airline, Alaska Airlines, said it would cooperate and did not believe it was being targeted by the investigation. In such a situation, it is normal for the Ministry of Justice to get involved.
The Wall Street Journal previously reported that investigators had contacted passengers and questioned pilots and flight attendants. In the incident with a Boeing that was almost new, the fuselage section on row 26 broke off shortly after takeoff while climbing. The more than 170 people on board were largely shocked. However, experts pointed out that by a lucky coincidence the two seats at the hole in the fuselage remained empty.
Incident already has consequences
According to initial investigations, the accident investigation authority NTSB assumes that four fastening bolts on the fuselage part were completely missing. There are indications that the fragment continued to slide up until it broke out on the 154th flight, said NTSB chief Jennifer Homendy in a hearing in the US Senate a few days ago.
The incident has already had consequences for Boeing. The aviation authority FAA is not allowing the aircraft manufacturer to expand Max production until further notice, which Boeing urgently needs to reduce the delay in deliveries. The FAA is also taking a close look at manufacturing.
Crashes in previous years are also in focus again
The Justice Department’s investigation could pose significant additional problems. The investigation is also likely to be about whether Boeing is adhering to the terms of a settlement that settled the investigation after two crashes of 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019.
A total of 346 people died in the accidents involving Indonesian Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines planes. The problem lay in assistance software. As part of the settlement, Boeing admitted that former employees had not properly informed the FAA about the extent of pilot training required to operate the software. The $2.5 billion settlement at the time stipulated, among other things, that Boeing would not have any legal problems and would cooperate with all government investigations.
Group supervision could be extended
If the Justice Department comes to the conclusion that Boeing violated its commitments, the allegations of false statements at the time could come back into play – or supervision of the company could be extended. The NTSB, which is continuing to investigate the Alaska incident, also fears that the Justice Department’s investigation could make Boeing employees less open in communicating with agency experts.