Duckworth Reacts to New Federal Report Detailing FAA’s Boeing Oversight Failures

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] — Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—Chair of the Senate’s Aviation Safety Subcommittee—issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its new comprehensive audit of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) oversight of Boeing 737 and 787 aircraft production, which revealed weaknesses and failures in FAA’s oversight processes and systems that limit its ability to identify and resolve Boeing production issues.

“From seeking to recreate the type of permissive policies that allowed Boeing to sell flawed aircraft that later crashed and killed hundreds to classifying obviously systemic safety concerns as merely ‘isolated’ issues, this report’s findings underscore my longstanding belief that FAA is not effectively holding Boeing accountable and ensuring it meets production safety standards and requirements,” said Senator Duckworth. “As the federal agency responsible for ensuring Boeing improves its safety culture and making sure every Boeing plane that leaves the factory fully meets approved standards that are in place to keep passengers safe, FAA clearly has work to do to better protect the flying public and I will continue my close Congressional oversight of those efforts.”

Duckworth has long pushed for improved federal oversight of Boeing. In June, she urged FAA Administrator Whitaker to make sure the FAA requires transparency and accountability as it oversees Boeing’s Safety and Quality Plan. In April, Duckworth implored FAA to scrutinize Boeing’s bad behavior and use its civil enforcement authority more often, when appropriate, and also called on the agency to review Boeing’s disturbing pattern of failing to disclose critical safety information about 737 MAX planes to pilots. In January, Duckworth called on FAA to reject a petition by Boeing for a safety exemption to allow the 737 MAX 7 to be certified to fly despite having another known safety defect that has not yet been fixed. The Senator subsequently met with Boeing’s CEO David Calhoun and urged him to withdraw the company’s petition, which the company did just days later, crediting Duckworth’s reasoning for the decision.

Duckworth helped author the landmark bipartisan FAA reauthorization that was signed into law in May to extend the FAA’s funding and authorities through Fiscal Year 2028. The reauthorization included several of her provisions to improve consumer safety, expand the aviation workforce and enhance protections for travelers with disabilities. Duckworth noted that while it was a tremendous victory for the flying public, more needs to be done to address the recent issues that have come to light with Boeing since a door plug blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight mid-flight.

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