Current:Home > StocksBoeing’s CEO is scheduled to field questions about plane safety from U.S. senators -Streamline Finance
Boeing’s CEO is scheduled to field questions about plane safety from U.S. senators
View
Date:2025-04-17 03:28:43
U.S. lawmakers are expected to press Boeing’s chief executive Tuesday about the company’s latest plan to fix its manufacturing problems, and relatives of people who died in two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jetliners plan to be in the room, watching him.
CEO David Calhoun is scheduled to appear before the Senate investigations subcommittee, which is chaired by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a Boeing critic.
The hearing will mark the first appearance before Congress by Calhoun — or any other high-ranking Boeing official — since a panel blew out of a 737 Max during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. No one was seriously injured in the incident, but it raised fresh concerns about the company’s best-selling commercial aircraft.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are conducting separate investigations.
“From the beginning, we took responsibility and cooperated transparently with the NTSB and the FAA,” Calhoun said in remarks prepared for the hearing. He defended the company’s safety culture.
“Our culture is far from perfect, but we are taking action and making progress,” Calhoun said in the prepared remarks. “We are taking comprehensive action today to strengthen safety and quality.”
Blumenthal has heard that before, when Boeing was reeling from deadly Max crashes in 2018 in Indonesia and 2019 in Ethiopia.
“Five years ago, Boeing made a promise to overhaul its safety practices and culture. That promise proved empty, and the American people deserve an explanation,” Blumenthal said when he announced the hearing. He called Calhoun’s testimony a necessary step for Boeing to regain public trust.
Calhoun’s appearance also was scheduled to take place as the Justice Department considers whether to prosecute Boeing for violating terms of a settlement following the fatal crashes.
The company says it has gotten the message. Boeing says it has slowed production, encouraged employees to report safety concerns, stopped assembly lines for a day to let workers talk about safety, and it appointed a retired Navy admiral to lead a quality review. Late last month, it delivered an improvement plan ordered by the FAA.
The drumbeat of bad news for Boeing goes on, however.
In the past week, the FAA said it was investigating how falsely documented titanium parts got into Boeing’s supply chain, and federal officials examined “substantial” damage to a Southwest Airlines 737 Max after an unusual mid-flight control issue.
Boeing disclosed that it hasn’t received a single order for a new Max — previously its best-selling plane — in two months.
Blumenthal first asked Calhoun to appear before the Senate subcommittee after a whistleblower, a Boeing quality engineer, claimed that manufacturing mistakes were raising safety risks on two of the biggest Boeing planes, the 787 Dreamliner and the 777. He said the company needed to explain why the public should be confident about Boeing’s work.
Boeing pushed back against the whistleblower’s claims, saying that extensive testing and inspections showed none of the problems that the engineer had predicted.
Calhoun announced in late March that he would retire at the end of the year. The head of the company’s commercial-airplanes unit resigned the day of Calhoun’s announcement.
Families of people who died in the Boeing Max crash in Ethiopia plan to attend Tuesday’s hearing on Capitol Hill. They have pressed the Justice Department repeatedly to prosecute Boeing.
“We will not rest until we see justice.,” said Zipporah Kuria, whose father died in the crash. She said the U.S. government should “hold Boeing and its corporate executives criminally responsible for the deaths of 346 people.”
The Justice Department determined last month that Boeing violated a 2021 settlement that shielded the company from prosecution for fraud for allegedly misleading regulators who approved the 737 Max. A top department official said Boeing failed to make changes to detect and prevent future violations of anti-fraud laws.
Prosecutors have until July 7 to decide what to do next.
veryGood! (68)
Related
- Kehlani Responds to Hurtful Accusation She’s in a Cult
- Weeks later, Coast Guard is still unsure of what caused oil spill in Gulf of Mexico
- Olivia Rodrigo performs new 'Hunger Games' song at Jingle Ball 2023, more highlights
- Protester lights self on fire outside Israeli consulate in Atlanta
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
- Iran-linked cyberattacks threaten equipment used in U.S. water systems and factories
- 20 Kick-Ass Secrets About Charlie's Angels Revealed
- Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers apologizes for hot-mic diss of his own team
- Audit: California risked millions in homelessness funds due to poor anti-fraud protections
- Harris focuses on shaping a post-conflict Gaza during a diplomatic blitz in Dubai with Arab leaders
Ranking
- Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
- Kiss say farewell to live touring, become first US band to go virtual and become digital avatars
- Michigan shuts out Iowa to win third consecutive Big Ten championship
- Vote count begins in 4 Indian states pitting opposition against premier Modi ahead of 2024 election
- How breaking emerged from battles in the burning Bronx to the Paris Olympics stage
- Feeling alone? 5 tips to create connection and combat loneliness
- Joe Flacco will start for Browns vs. Rams. Here's why Cleveland is turning to veteran QB
- Down goes No. 1: Northwestern upsets top-ranked Purdue once again
Recommendation
USA women's basketball live updates at Olympics: Start time vs Nigeria, how to watch
Weeks later, Coast Guard is still unsure of what caused oil spill in Gulf of Mexico
Burkina Faso rights defender abducted as concerns grow over alleged clampdown on dissent
Why Kirby Smart thinks Georgia should still be selected for College Football Playoff
Louisiana high court temporarily removes Judge Eboni Johnson Rose from Baton Rouge bench amid probe
Weeks later, Coast Guard is still unsure of what caused oil spill in Gulf of Mexico
Are FTC regulators two weeks away from a decision on Kroger's $25B Albertsons takeover?
Defense head calls out those who advocate isolationism and ‘an American retreat from responsibility’