FAA Orders Inspection of Door Plugs on Another Boeing Model

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Facts

  • The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Sunday ordered inspections take place on Boeing 737-900ER aircraft as 'an added layer of safety' to make sure their mid-exit door plugs are securing the door properly.1
  • The announcement comes after more than 170 of Boeing's 737 Max 9 planes were grounded, after a door plug operated by Alaska Airlines blew off during a Jan. 5 flight. However, the FAA has said there have been no issues with door plugs on the 900ERs, of which Boeing has delivered 500 between 2007 and 2019.2
  • Although the 737-900ER isn't part of the newer Max series, it features the same optional door plug as the models with the issue. Delta and United Airlines said they've already begun inspecting their 900ERs and expect no disruptions.3
  • The FAA says it's investigating Boeing's manufacturing practices and production lines, including those linked to its door plug maker Spirit AeroSystems. In its probe of the grounded Max 9s, the agency said it had already inspected 40 aircraft, but it didn't state when they'd be able to fly again.4
  • Following the government announcement, Boeing's stock was down 3% in market trading Monday. Stock has dropped roughly 14% since the Max 9 door plug incident.5

Sources: 1USA Today, 2NPR Online News, 3CNN (a), 4BBC News and 5CNN (b).

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Barrons.com. Any news of incidents during flights will draw public scrutiny and fear, but it's important to take a step back and look at the overall safety record of US commercial planes. According to the same agency investigating Boeing, the number of annual flight accidents has dropped from 1.8K two decades ago to 1.2K today and, of those, 95% occurred on private noncommercial, agriculture, or on-demand air-taxi flights. While issues can occur, flying is still one of the safest transportation methods around.
  • Narrative B, as provided by New York Times. Boeing was once a beloved company producing the most advanced and safest aircraft in the world. This was due to its policy of prioritizing safety in manufacturing, something that changed after the company began outsourcing manufacturing to companies like Spirit in 2005. As this corporate environment has distanced the company further from its roots, its old generation of safety-focused employees has also chosen to retire. Boeing can be great again, but to do so it must stop putting cost-effectiveness over quality engineering.