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☆ F.A.A. Will Require More Rest for Air Traffic Controllers
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday that it was taking significant steps to mitigate the risks posed by exhaustion among air traffic controllers, after a series of close calls last year raised alarms about the safety of the U.S. air travel system. Mike Whitaker, the F.A.A. administrator, issued a directive increasing the number of hours that controllers are required to rest between shifts from nine hours to 10, and 12 hours before a midnight shift. The announcement came as the air safety regulator released a 114-page report from an expert panel that assessed the risks associated with air traffic controller fatigue. “We are committed to a sustained effort to address controller fatigue and ensure our airspace is the safest in the world,” Mr. Whitaker said in a statement.

Persons: Mike Whitaker, Mr, Whitaker Organizations: Federal Aviation Administration Locations: U.S

☆ 4 Takeaways About Boeing’s Quality Problems
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Niraj Chokshi | Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing has faced intense scrutiny and pressure since a panel blew off a 737 Max 9 shortly after the plane, an Alaska Airlines flight, took off on Jan. 5. The episode raised fresh questions about the quality of the planes the company produces several years after two Max 8 planes crashed, killing nearly 350 people. Interviews with more than two dozen current and former employees reveal longstanding concerns about quality, particularly as pressure increased to keep production going in the company’s factories. Now, Boeing faces an immense challenge as it seeks to make changes that improve the quality of its products and regain its credibility with lawmakers, regulators, airlines and the public. Current and former Boeing employees said that for years it felt as if quality took a back seat to keeping planes moving through its factories.

Persons: Max Organizations: Boeing, Alaska Airlines

In February last year, a new Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 Max plane was on one of its first flights when an automated stabilizing system appeared to malfunction, forcing the pilots to make an emergency landing soon after they took off. Less than two months later, an Alaska Airlines 737 Max plane with eight hours of total flight time was briefly grounded until mechanics resolved a problem with a fire detection system. And in November, an engine on a just-delivered United Airlines 737 Max failed at 37,000 feet. These incidents, which the airlines disclosed to the Federal Aviation Administration, were not widely reported. But since Jan. 5, when a panel on a two-month-old Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 jet blew off in midair, episodes like these have taken on new resonance, raising further questions about the quality of the planes Boeing is producing.

Persons: Max, ”, Joe Jacobsen Organizations: Southwest Airlines Boeing, Alaska Airlines, United Airlines, Federal Aviation Administration, Max, Boeing Locations: Alaska

☆ Boeing C.E.O. to Step Down in Major Reshuffle at Embattled Plane Maker
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Sydney Ember | Niraj Chokshi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing announced Monday that its chief executive, David Calhoun, would step down at the end of 2024 as part of a broad management shake-up, as the aircraft maker grapples with its most significant safety crisis in years. Boeing also announced that its chairman, Larry Kellner, would not stand for re-election. The board elected Steve Mollenkopf, an electrical engineer by training and the former chief executive of Qualcomm, as its new chairman. In that role, he will lead the process of choosing Boeing’s next chief executive. The management overhaul comes less than three months after a panel, known as a door plug, blew off a Boeing Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight on Jan. 5.

Persons: David Calhoun, Stan Deal, Stephanie Pope, Larry Kellner, Steve Mollenkopf, Boeing’s Organizations: Boeing, Qualcomm, Boeing Max, Alaska Airlines

☆ Boeing Directs Airlines to Check 787 Cockpit Seats After Latam Incident
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Santul Nerkar | Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing has told airlines to check the cockpit seats of its 787 Dreamliner plane, the company said on Friday, after a Latam Airlines plane suddenly plunged on a flight to Auckland, New Zealand, on Monday, injuring passengers. Aviation regulators are investigating the incident and have not released any findings. In a statement, Boeing said it had reminded airlines of a safety memo from 2017 that instructed them on how to inspect and maintain switches on flight deck seats. “The investigation of Flight LA800 is ongoing and we defer to the investigation authorities on any potential findings,” the company said. “We are recommending operators perform an inspection at the next maintenance opportunity,” it added.

Organizations: Boeing, Airlines, Street, Aviation Locations: Auckland , New Zealand

☆ Hallan muerto a uno de los principales denunciantes de los problemas de calidad de Boeing
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

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Organizations: The

☆ Boeing Whistleblower Who Raised Quality Concerns Is Found Dead
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A prominent Boeing whistle-blower, a former quality manager who raised concerns about manufacturing practices at the company’s 787 Dreamliner factory in South Carolina, was found dead on Saturday with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to local officials. The whistle-blower, John Barnett, was in Charleston for a deposition for a lawsuit in which he accused Boeing of retaliating against him for making complaints about quality and safety. Quality problems involving both design and manufacturing have plagued Boeing for years — most prominently after the crashes of two Boeing 737 Max jets in 2018 and 2019, and again since a fuselage panel blew out on a Max flight shortly after takeoff two months ago. Mr. Barnett filed the complaint against Boeing with the U.S. Labor Department in 2017 under the AIR21 Whistleblower Protection Program, which protects employees of plane manufacturers who report information pertaining to air carrier safety violations. He left the company that year.

Persons: John Barnett, Barnett Organizations: Boeing, Max, U.S . Labor Department, AIR21 Locations: South Carolina, Charleston

Quality concerns and production slowdowns. Boeing is an American institution that has contributed to the country’s place on the global stage. As business reporters at The New York Times, we have for years been covering Boeing and concerns over the quality of the planes it makes. We want to hear from people who work — or have worked — at Boeing or at companies, government agencies or other organizations that deal with Boeing about what the company is doing wrong or right. We will not publish any part of your submission without following up with you again to get your permission.

Organizations: Boeing, The New York Times, Airbus, Alaska Airlines Locations: American

Boeing said on Friday that it was in talks to acquire Spirit AeroSystems, a struggling supplier that the manufacturer spun out nearly two decades ago and that makes the bodies of the 737 Max jet. In reabsorbing Spirit, Boeing would be seeking to rescue and restructure a troubled but important partner that has been battered by years of losses and quality control problems. Spirit’s problems have also at times limited how fast Boeing can produce Max planes, its most popular commercial jet. Bringing Spirit, one of the company’s key suppliers, back in house would be a significant strategic shift for Boeing, which has long relied on outsourcing to make its planes. Experts say the episode could have been catastrophic had it happened at a higher altitude with passengers moving about the cabin.

Organizations: Boeing, Alaska Airlines

☆ Boeing 737 Max Official Is Out as Questions Linger on Mishap
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Sydney Ember | Niraj Chokshi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing said on Wednesday that it was shaking up the leadership in its commercial airplanes unit after a harrowing incident last month during which a piece fell off a 737 Max 9 jet in flight. Ed Clark, the head of Boeing’s 737 Max program, which includes the Max 9, is leaving immediately, Stan Deal, the chief executive of the commercial airplanes unit, said in a memo to employees. Boeing, which also announced other leadership changes, has been under pressure from regulators, airlines and members of Congress to prove that it is committed to making safe planes. Boeing said recently that it was overhauling its quality control process, including increased inspections at the factory in Renton, Wash., where Mr. Clark oversaw Max production. Those crashes cost Boeing billions of dollars, damaged its image and attracted more scrutiny of the company from regulators worldwide.

Persons: Ed Clark, Stan Deal, Clark, Max Organizations: Boeing, Alaska Airlines, Max Locations: Renton, Wash, Alaska

☆ Alaska Airlines 737 May Have Left Boeing Factory Missing Bolts, N.T.S.B. Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Sydney Ember | Mark Walker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The panel, known as a door plug, was opened to repair damaged rivets on the plane’s body, known as the fuselage. The report did not say who removed the bolts keeping the door plug in place. But the safety board said it appeared that not all the bolts were put back once the door was reinstalled on the plane after the rivets had been repaired. provided a photograph of the door plug after it was reinstalled but before the plane’s interior was restored. In the image, three of the four bolts appear to be missing.

Organizations: Alaska Airlines, National Transportation Safety Board, Boeing Locations: Alaska, Boeing’s, Renton, Wash

☆ Boeing, Still Recovering From Max 8 Crashes, Faces a New Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Santul Nerkar | Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After two deadly crashes involving its best-selling 737 Max 8 planes five years ago, Boeing spent billions of dollars to make its products safer and repair its reputation. Now, the company is again confronting a wave of uncertainty and costs following a harrowing incident involving a different 737 jet. Just four weeks ago, a hole blew open on a 737 Max 9 jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight shortly after takeoff when what appears to have been a poorly attached panel tore away. The incident has prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to indefinitely halt Boeing’s ambitious plans to raise production of Max planes. The chief executive of United Airlines has gone so far as to suggest that his company might cancel some of its orders with Boeing.

Persons: Max, Trump Organizations: Boeing, Alaska Airlines, Alaska, Federal Aviation Administration, Passengers, United Airlines, Justice Department

☆ Boeing Suspends Financial Outlook as It Focuses on Safety
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Sydney Ember | More About Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing on Wednesday said that it would not provide a full-year financial forecast, the clearest indication yet that the company is trying to assure customers that it is prioritizing safety amid growing concerns about its popular 737 Max jets. Even as it announced its quarterly earnings, the company chose to focus instead on discussing quality control. Boeing is trying to stem the fallout from an incident less than four weeks ago in which a hole blew open on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 plane shortly after takeoff. “While we often use this time of year to share or update our financial and operational objectives, now is not the time for that,” Boeing’s chief executive, Dave Calhoun, wrote in a message to employees. Quality concerns have taken on new urgency after news accounts, including in The New York Times, that Boeing workers opened and reinstalled the panel that blew off the plane, known as a door plug.

Persons: ”, Dave Calhoun Organizations: Boeing, Alaska Airlines, The New York Times

☆ Boeing Faces Tricky Balance Between Safety and Financial Performance
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Less than four weeks after a hole blew open on a Boeing 737 Max 9 jet during a flight, company executives face a thorny question: Should they emphasize safety or financial performance? The issue is looming as Boeing prepares to report its fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday amid its most significant safety crisis in years. The National Transportation Safety Board is expected to release a preliminary report this week on the incident, which occurred on an Alaska Airlines flight. The report could shed more light on how a panel blew off the Max 9 and will almost certainly ramp up scrutiny of Boeing by lawmakers, airlines and safety groups. But it is not clear what balance he and other executives will strike in their comments as they try to contain the fallout from the Max 9 incident.

Persons: Dave Calhoun, Max Organizations: Boeing, Max, National Transportation Safety, Alaska Airlines

☆ Airlines Hoping for More Boeing Jets Could Be Waiting Awhile
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Sydney Ember | Santul Nerkar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Boeing hoped 2024 would be the year it would significantly increase production of its popular Max jets. Since then, details have emerged about the jet’s production at Boeing’s facility in Renton, Wash., that have intensified scrutiny of the company’s quality control. Boeing workers opened and then reinstalled the panel about a month before the plane was delivered to Alaska Airlines. The directive is another setback for Boeing, which had been planning to increase production of its Max plane series to more than 500 this year, from about 400 last year. It also planned to add another assembly line at a factory in Everett, Wash., a major Boeing production hub north of Seattle.

Persons: Max Organizations: Boeing, Federal Aviation Administration, Max, Alaska Airlines, Portland International Locations: Oregon, Renton, Wash, Everett, Seattle

☆ Boeing Reinstalled Panel That Later Blew Out of 737 Max Jet
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Sydney Ember | Mark Walker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Nearly three weeks after a hole blew open on a Boeing 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight, terrifying passengers, new details about the jet’s production are intensifying scrutiny of Boeing’s quality-control practices. About a month before the Max 9 was delivered to Alaska Airlines in October, workers at Boeing’s factory in Renton, Wash., opened and later reinstalled the panel that would blow off the plane’s body, according to a person familiar with the matter. The employees opened the panel, known as a door plug, because work needed to be done to its rivets — which are often used to join and secure parts on planes — said the person, who asked for anonymity because the person isn’t authorized to speak publicly while the National Transportation Safety Board conducts an investigation. The request to open the plug came from employees of Spirit AeroSystems, a supplier that makes the body for the 737 Max in Wichita, Kan. After Boeing employees complied, Spirit employees who are based at Boeing’s Renton factory repaired the rivets. Boeing employees then reinstalled the door.

Persons: Max, — Organizations: Boeing, Max, Alaska Airlines, National Transportation, Spirit Locations: Boeing’s, Renton, Wash, Wichita, Kan

On Thursdays and Fridays, his shifts typically began in the afternoon. Only eight or nine hours separated the end of some shifts from the beginning of others. “So much for a two-day weekend,” he said this summer, on what was supposed to be a day off. He eventually went to a doctor, who diagnosed him with sleep apnea and told him to quit his job because the schedule was endangering his health. It was the overtime that made the job intolerable, even though the extra hours added 25 percent to his roughly $150,000 salary.

Persons: ”, “

A Times investigation found that U.S. passenger planes come dangerously close to crashing into each other far more frequently than the public knows. Sydney Ember, an economics reporter for The Times, explains why an aviation system known for its safety is producing such a steady stream of close calls.

Persons: Sydney Ember Organizations: The Times

Do You Work in Aviation and Have Concerns About Safety? We Want to Hear From You. Close calls involving commercial airlines happen far more frequently than the flying public realizes, a Times investigation has found. We want to hear from people working in aviation about safety issues. Share full article

Organizations: Aviation, Times

Mistakes by air traffic controllers — stretched thin by a nationwide staffing shortage — have been one major factor. So do the air traffic controllers who scour the skies and manage takeoffs and landings. The number of fully trained air traffic controllers nationwide has fallen 10 percent in the past decade. data and the agency’s most recent “Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan.”Nearly all U.S. air traffic control facilities are understaffed Circles represent 313 air traffic facilities in the United States, including airport towers and larger regional centers. Desiree Rios for The New York TimesPilots, air traffic controllers and federal investigators have warned repeatedly that America’s air safety system is fraying.

Persons: Louis Armstrong, —, ”, Biden, Matthew Lehner, Mr, Lehner, Ilana Panich, Kennedy, Jan, “, ” Jennifer Homendy, Joe Raedle, Reagan, Desiree Rios, ’, ‘ Organizations: Southwest Airlines, Louis Armstrong New, International Airport, Delta Air, New, Airport, American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Frontier, Federal Aviation Administration, The New York Times, United Airlines, American, Airbus, louisiana Magnolia, Times, Phoenix, NASA, Aviation, Pilots, Technology, U.S, Airlines, United, “, Bergstrom International Airport, Kennedy International, Delta, FedEx, JetBlue Airways, JetBlue, National Transportation Safety, Spirit Airlines, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, San, Casper, Federal Aviation, The Times, FAA, National Transportation Safety Board, Department of, Gulfstream, Miami, The New York Times Pilots, Flying Magazine, Sky Harbor, Boeing Locations: Airport Mississippi, New Orleans, San Francisco, American, Dallas, louisiana, louisiana Magnolia Minden arkansas, Minden louisiana, United States, U.S, San Diego, Phoenix, Swiss, Continental, Buffalo, United, Delta, Southwest, —, Austin, Texas, New York, Austin , Texas, Sarasota , Fla, Burbank, Calif, Boston, New York City, Fort, Salt Lake, Ontario, Denver, Las, Portland ,, Baltimore, Miami, Peoria, Ill, Fort Worth, Jacksonville, Fla, Philadelphia, Fort Lauderdale, Lexington, Ky, Tampa

☆ U.S. Job Growth Remains Strong Despite Economic Clouds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

American employers added an unanticipated barrage of workers in May, reaffirming the labor market’s vigor. Defying expectations of a slowdown, payrolls grew by 339,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Labor Department said on Friday. The increase, the largest since January, suggested that the job market was still piping hot despite a swirl of economic headwinds. In a sign that the pressure to entice workers with pay increases is lifting, wage growth eased. Fed officials have indicated that the jobs report will be an important factor as they decide whether to raise interest rates again.

Organizations: Labor Department, Federal Reserve

☆ May Jobs Report U.S. Job Growth Expected to Remain Resilient: Live Updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The recession keeps being postponed. Yet consumer spending keeps setting records, and unemployment remains near a five-decade low. Forecasters expect Friday’s jobs report for May to reveal another month of solid — albeit gradually slowing — employment growth. Data from early in the second quarter point to continued growth: Consumer spending and industrial output increased in April. He added, “It’s possible that we will have what I hope would be a mild recession.”

Persons: ” Jerome H, Powell Organizations: Federal Locations: U.S

☆ Job Openings Slipped in March as Labor Market Continued Easing
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Sydney Ember | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The JOLTS report is the last major piece of data that Fed policymakers will see before their decision. More recently, however, the ratio has been declining — a welcome sign for the Fed that underscores the labor market’s gradual slowdown. Officials also track other details in the report, including the number of layoffs and workers who quit their jobs voluntarily. The Background: Labor Market StrengthMonth after month, the labor market has remained robust, defying expectations and complicating the Fed’s efforts to cool the economy. In addition to the Fed decision on Wednesday, there will be the Labor Department’s monthly snapshot of the employment situation on Friday.

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