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sial safety inspection program, have a say on
the issue. Boeing, in a statement, said that its
employees who are designated as FAA repre-
sentatives, act independently and on behalf of
the regulatory body.

Not everyone, however, is convinced. Rep.
Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., chairman of the
House Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure, is in favor of more direct FAA
oversight of any system that is critical to safety;
he has urged the FAA to conduct a third-party
review of the 737 Max. American consumer
advocate Ralph Nader, whose grandniece was
killed in the Ethiopian Air crash, went as far as
to allege that “the FAA has been in the pockets
of the Boeing company for years…”

Although controversial, the self-inspection pro-
gram, which was created in 2005, has been
largely effective and has, according to Boeing, that the review of 737 MAX jets has been expanded to include
led to the “safest transportation system in the emergency procedures used by pilots on earlier 737 models.
world.” The numbers support the point of view -
commercial aviation in the US had had a stellar Investigators believe the Maneuvering Characteristic Augmentation
safety record over the last decade, with just System (MCAS) flight control system on the 737 Max, which auto-
one passenger death since 2009. According matically pushes the plane’s nose down when data indicates the
to supporters of the ODA, the program, reau- plane may stall, is to be blamed for the two crashes. Elwell says that
thorized in 2018, helps fill a gap; the FAA would Boeing should have included more information about the MCAS,
need US$1.8 billion to hire an additional 10,000 which his new for the 737 Max, in its pilot’s manual. The aerospace
inspectors otherwise. Among the detractors is giant had not revealed the existence of the system in the manual
the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, a before the crash.
union representing FAA inspectors, which has
been vocal in opposing the expansion of the Fresh Issues to the Fore
ODA system. On top of the relentless scrutiny it has had to face in recent months
for its alleged failure to disclose the presence of the MCAS on the
No Date Set for Return 737s, Boeing is having to deal with issues, which aren’t related to
Although there were media reports that the FAA the flight control system problem, as well. On June 2, the company
expects to approve the 737 MAX jet’s return to said that some of its 737 aircraft, including the 737 Max, may have
service as early as late June, the agency has faulty slat track assemblies on their wings. Working in tandem with
dismissed all speculations. After a meeting the FAA, the company has reached out to operators of the 737
with aviation regulators that was attended by Max and NG aircraft and asked them to inspect all their aircraft.
representatives from 33 countries, Elwell said
that no date had been set for the plane to fly
again. “If it takes a year to find everything, we
need to give us the confidence to lift the order,
then so be it,” he added. “If there is a crisis in
confidence, we hope this will help to show the
world that the world still talks together about
aviation safety issues.”

Even though Boeing’s software fix has been
evaluated during more than 200 test flights of
the 737 Max since the grounding, the company
is yet to apply to have the aircraft recertified.
Given that the aviation industry is keenly watch-
ing its every step, the FAA has chosen to tread
cautiously on the issue. In what is likely to delay
the re-entry into service of the grounded air-
craft, a recent Wall Street Journal report said

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