New trouble for Boeing. Already dealing with the 737 Max crisis, the aviation giant is facing a new emergency: one of its engineers, Sam Salehpour, accused it of taking shortcuts to increase production speed, potentially leaving defects structural on the 787 and 777. Heavy accusations that penalize the Boeing stock on Wall Street, where it ends up losing over 1.40%.
Salehpour detailed his accusations to the American authorities with a letter addressed to the head of the Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Whitaker. These include the fact that there are currently almost a thousand 787s in flight and around 400 777s at risk of structural failure. "We carefully review all safety-related information," FAA spokesman Ian Gregor simply commented.
The engineer will also testify in the next few days in Congress during a hearing called by Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal to "examine the safety culture within Boeing by focusing on first-hand accounts" about the company. Boeing has pledged to cooperate with Congress and provide documents necessary for thorough review. While assuring its cooperation, the aviation giant flatly rejected its engineer's accusations: "We have full confidence in the 787 Dreamliner. The accusations about its structural integrity are not accused," he said.
Similar confidence was expressed by Boeing in the "safety and durability of the 777s". The accusations are a new heavy blow for Boeing, recently involved in a new series of accidents with the 737 Max which have rekindled fears about the safety of its aircraft. In January, the door of an Alaska Airlines 737 exploded in flight, resulting in the grounding of many 737 Max 9s in the United States. A sensational episode that plunged the company back into a deep crisis after a 2018 and 2019 to forget, when two Boeing Max 8 crashed killing almost 350 people. The investigation launched after the Alaska Airlines crash then revealed that Boeing failed 33 out of 88 checks in the 737 Max production process, worsening an already complex picture.
In an effort to move on, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun last month announced his exit at the end of 2024. Also saying goodbye are Boeing's head of commercial aircraft, Stan Deal, and chairman of the board, Larry Kellner. A shake-up to the structure with which Boeing hopes to recover its reputation and look forward after years spent stemming a succession of crises that have made it tremble. Not an easy task that will fall to the new CEO, which has not yet been identified.