Boeing fails 33 of 89 FAA inspections in 737 Max probe

Boeing has failed 33 out of 89 inspections conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) during a six-week audit of the production of the 737 Max jet.

The probe was launched after a midair incident involving the 737 Max 9 in January, reported Sputnik quoting a New York Times report on Tuesday, citing the FAA review.

The audit has found 97 alleged violations throughout the production process at the plane manufacturer and one of its key suppliers, Spirit AeroSystems, the newspaper reported, adding that the companies breached many quality control requirements.

The FAA conducted 13 tests of Spirit AeroSystems’ production, responsible for the fuselage of the 737 Max. Six of those tests resulted in a pass, while the other seven resulted in a failing grade, the newspaper reported.

Spirit employees reportedly used a hotel key card to check a door seal, and applied liquid soap to a door seal “as a lubricant in the fit-up process,” while some Boeing’s engineers, interviewed by the FAA, turned out to have poor knowledge about the company’s quality-control processes, with their overall average score at only 58 percent.

Both companies were reported to have problems with door plugs similar to the one that blew off the Alaska Airlines jet in January, the newspaper reported.

‘Non-compliance issues’

Last week, the FAA announced that it had identified “non-compliance issues” in Boeing’s manufacturing process control, parts handling, storage, and product control, and gave the company 90 days to present its action plan.

On January 5, Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 with 171 passengers and six crew members on board made an emergency landing shortly after takeoff in Portland, Oregon after a door plug detached midair.

No injuries were reported at the time, but several days later, some passengers filed a lawsuit against the jet-producing company, demanding compensation for the physical, emotional, and economic harm.

The FAA ordered the grounding of all Boeing 737 Max 9 planes in the United States.

The troubles with Boeing aircraft did not end there, as a few weeks later, an oxygen leak was discovered on board a Boeing 737 that was expected to transport US Secretary of State Antony Blinken from the Davos World Economic Forum.

The leak proved to be impossible to repair, rendering the plane unsafe to fly.

- Bernama