Boeing Given 90 Days To Submit Quality Issue Turnaround

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) investigating Boeing and its key practices has given the plane maker an order.

As part of the latest order, the FAA has said Boeing must develop a comprehensive action plan to address systemic quality control issues. This action plan has to meet the non-negotiable safety standards.

The FAA has said that Boeing has a maximum of 90 days to develop such a plan. However, it can provide it earlier than 90 days so long as it is deemed suitable.

Mike Whitaker, the Chief of the FAA, known to be the governing body for aviation, says that Boeing needs to understand that their action plan will also be forced to address ongoing audits alongside expert panel findings.

Boeing needs to, in the eyes of the FAA, once and for all, commit to not just profound improvements but real ones, too. Internal foundational changes are said to require effort but aren’t impossible. Senior leadership is being called upon to lead from the front, and the FAA adds they’ll be held accountable during the eventual implementation process.

The Safety Management System (SMS) will be front and centre as the FAA requests that Boeing take steps to mature this program. Integration must also be made between the SMS program and its quality management system.

By integrating these, the mission is to see the same rigour and oversight applied towards suppliers, among many others. Essentially, the FAA has determined that from suppliers to the floor at Boeing, there must be cohesion and the highest standards. These standards have not been present for a considerable period.

Whether it was the findings from the 2018/19 MAX incidents to now the most recent door blowout incident that occurred at the top of the calendar year, Boeing’s quality issues, culture, and much more have been key talking points of the industry.

These panels, experts, orders, plans and much more emphasised in the last few months are aimed at correcting years, some analysts and insiders would argue decades of issues.

By the time these plans are implemented and hopefully successful, the mid to late 1900s Boeing will be present. A timeframe on when this will be the case or even if it can happen remains to be seen. However, everyone will be working tirelessly to make it possible.