Can Boeing continue to tolerate the criticism and the scrutiny? Is the company on a downward spiral? These are questions many in the industry are pondering lately.
Boeing
has been under harsh scrutiny since early January, when a door panel literally
fell off a plane in mid-flight on a 737 Max-9.
Its operational protocols and
safety standards have been questioned, and the company CEO and two other
executives have resigned.
Now
come more allegations.
According to the New York Times, whistleblower has accused the company of ignoring
his complaints about the manufacturing process of the 787 Dreamliner planes. Not only were his claims
ignored, he says, but he was retaliated against by being transferred to a
different model of plane for production.
Boeing has denied the allegations but the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) has said it will investigate. The whistleblower, Sam
Salehpour, a Boeing engineer, alleged that Boeing took shortcuts when
manufacturing its 777 and 787 Dreamliner jets.
The FAA said it has been looking into his complaints since
he first made them in January. It only became public knowledge earlier this
week.
Still, it is further damage to the company’s public
reputation as well as its standing in the airline industry.
Boeing says allegations are inaccurate
“These claims about the structural integrity of the 787
are inaccurate and do not represent the comprehensive work Boeing has done to
ensure the quality and long-term safety of the aircraft,” the company said in a
statement. “…We are fully confident in the safety and durability of the 777
family. These claims are inaccurate.”
Boeing has already admitted culpability in the two crashes
that happened five years ago a couple of months apart on two different airlines
in the 737 family. Now the company has been accused by the National
Transportation Safety Board of impeding and investigation into the door plug
incident earlier this year.
Boeing has lost 30 percent of its stock price this year,
and an estimated $50 billion in market valuation. It has until late May to
address the safety issues for the FAA. The good news is that Boeing has only
one major competitor in the airline manufacturing business.
But it still has to rebuild trust among the airlines and
with the flying public.
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