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FAA opens Boeing probe over possible 'falsified' 787 records

May 7, 2024

The planemaker informed the aviation safety regulator last month that required tests on its 787 aircraft model were not performed.

https://p.dw.com/p/4fZ8y
An employee walks past a fuselage section under construction at Boeing Co.'s 787 Dreamliner campus in North Charleston, South Carolina, US
The FAA said some required inspections of the 787 Dreamliner 'may not have been completed'Image: Gavin McIntyre/REUTERS

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said Monday it had opened an investigation into Boeing after the American multinational corporation admitted it may not have completed required inspections on some 787 planes.

These checks are needed to ensure a safe and functional electrical flow between aircraft components.

More specifically, these inspections are needed to "confirm adequate bonding and grounding where the wings join the fuselage on certain 787 Dreamliner airplanes," according to the US air safety authority.

"The FAA is investigating whether Boeing completed the inspections and whether company employees may have falsified aircraft records," the FAA continued.

"At the same time, Boeing is reinspecting all 787 airplanes still within the production system and must also create a plan to address the in-service fleet."

No immediate safety risk

The issue surfaced after a Boeing member of staff noticed an "irregularity" and raised the issue with a supervisor who took it further.

"We quickly reviewed the matter and learned that several people had been violating company policies by not performing a required test, but recording the work as having been completed," Scott Stocker, head of the Boeing 787 program, said in an email to employees on April 29.

"We promptly informed our regulator about what we learned and are taking swift and serious corrective action," said Stocker, adding that engineering staff determined that the issues do not pose an immediate safety risk.

Boeing: Turbulent times for US planemaker

Beleaguered Boeing beset with problems

The FAA also recently ordered an audit of assembly lines at a Boeing factory near Seattle, where the company builds planes such as the Alaska Airlines 737 Max.

The US aviation giant has been beset by safety issues involving its 737 fleet. In January, a door plug ripped off an Alaska Airlines 737 Max-9 flight some 16,000 feet in the air. Last month an emergency exit slide fell off a Delta Air Lines Boeing shortly after takeoff from New York.

In between those two incidents, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun announced he would step down at the end of 2024.

How much stress can an aircraft withstand?

jsi/kb (AP, AFP)