A whistleblower claims that Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner is flawed. The FAA
is investigating
By Gregory Wallace and Gabe Cohen, CNN
3 minute read
Updated 6:29 AM EDT, Wed April 10, 2024
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03:24 - Source: CNN
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Federal
authorities say they’re investigating Boeing after a whistleblower repeatedly
raised concerns with two widebody jet models, and claimed the company retaliated
against him.
Whistleblower
Sam Salehpour, a Boeing engineer, alleges that Boeing took shortcuts when
manufacturing its 777 and 787 Dreamliner jets, and that the risks could become
catastrophic as the airplanes age. The New York Times was
first to report the whistleblower complaint.
His formal
complaint to the Federal Aviation Administration, filed in January and made
public on Tuesday, is not specific to the newer 737 Max jet that has been
grounded twice by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Salehpour on
Tuesday said his complaint raises “two quality issues that may dramatically
reduce the life of the planes.”
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“I am doing
this not because I want Boeing to fail, but because I want it to succeed and
prevent crashes from happening,” Salehpour told reporters on a conference call
Tuesday. “The truth is Boeing can’t keep going the way it is. It
needs to do a little bit better, I think.”
The FAA has
interviewed Salehpour as part of its investigation, his attorney Lisa Banks
said. The FAA said it investigates all whistleblower complaints.
“Voluntary
reporting without fear of reprisal is a critical component in aviation safety,”
the FAA said. “We strongly encourage everyone in the aviation industry to
share information.”
A Senate
subcommittee will also take up the concerns at a hearing next week.
“We are
fully confident in the safety and durability of the 777 family,” Boeing said in
a statement Wednesday. “These claims are inaccurate.”
It also
disputed Salehpour’s concerns about the 787.
“These
claims about the structural integrity of the 787 are inaccurate and do not
represent the comprehensive work Boeing has done to ensure the quality and long-term
safety of the aircraft,” the company said in a statement.
Gaps in the Dreamliner
Boeing’s 787
Dreamliner planes, which entered service in 2011, could have 50-year lifespans
– around 44,000 flights each, the company says.
But
Salehpour’s complaint alleges crews assembling the plane failed to properly
fill tiny gaps when joining separately manufactured parts of the
fuselage. That puts more wear on the plane, shortening its lifespan and
risking “catastrophic” failure, Salehpour’s attorneys alleged.
The
allegations aren’t entirely new: For nearly two years starting in 2021, the FAA
and Boeing halted deliveries of the new Dreamliners while
it looked into the gaps. Boeing said it made changes in its manufacturing
process, and deliveries ultimately resumed.
“We
incorporated the join inspection and verification activity into our production
system so that airplanes coming off of the production line meet these
specifications,” Boeing said.
The 787
Dreamliners were not grounded, but the FAA twice investigated questions about
quality control during the jet’s assembly process. The company maintained that
the planes were and are safe to fly.
Salehpour’s
attorneys said the FAA was surprised to discover through his complaint that the
gaps were still an issue.
“I literally
saw people jumping on the pieces of the airplane to get them to align,”
Salehpour said. “By jumping up and down, you’re deforming parts so that
the holes align temporarily … and that’s not how you build an airplane.”
Alleged retaliation led to another discovery
Salehpour
said Boeing retaliated against him after he raised another concern about the
787 and a different plane model.
The whistleblower
complaint said he pointed out to management the existence of drilling issues
with the 787, and was then “ignored and ultimately transferred out of the 787
program to the 777 program.”
In his new
role, Salehpour said he discovered subpar work with aligning body pieces, and
pressure on engineers to green-light work they have not yet inspected.
In all,
Salehpour said the issues involve more than 400 777s and 1,000 787s.
Boeing (BA)
shares fell 2% Tuesday.
This is a
developing story. It will be updated.
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