Boeing shares plunge after revelation of employee instant messages suggesting planemaker misled FAA on key 737 Max safety system in 2016
- Boeing handed over the ‘concerning’ 2016 instant messages to FAA on Thursday
- Messages between two employees describe communications with the FAA
- Sources say they suggest Boeing misled FAA about a key safety system
- FAA says that Boeing was aware of the messages for months but withheld them
- Boeing shares plunged as much as 4% in afternoon trading on Friday
Shocking instant messages between two Boeing employees suggest that the company misled the FAA about a key safety system on the troubled 737 Max, sources briefed on the matter said.
Boeing on Thursday alerted the FAA about the troubling messages from 2016 — though according to the federal agency the company waited months to disclose them.
Federal Aviation Administration chief Steve Dickson demanded an explanation from Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg in a letter on Friday.
The content of the 2016 messages isn’t clear, but FAA says they characterize ‘certain communications with the FAA during the original certification of the 737 MAX in 2016.’
Federal Aviation Administration chief Steve Dickson demanded an explanation from Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg in a letter on Friday
The FAA said it found the messages ‘concerning’ and ‘is reviewing this information to determine what action is appropriate’.
The letter said that Boeing was aware of the troubling instant messages, but the company waited months to disclose them.
‘I understand that Boeing discovered the document in its files months ago. I expect your explanation immediately regarding the content of this document and Boeing’s delay in disclosing the document to its safety regulator,’ Dickson wrote.
The FAA said it flagged its concerns to lawmakers on Capitol Hill and the Department of Transportation’s inspector general.
Boeing did not have an immediate comment.
Boeing shares plunged nearly 7% in trading on Friday following the news
Boeing 737 Max airplanes are seen parked on Boeing property near Boeing Field in August. New instant messages suggest the company misled the FAA about a safety system
Boeing shares plunged nearly 7% in trading on Friday.
International regulators have criticized Boeing’s communication with FAA over a Max flight system implicated in two crashes that killed 346 people.
The 737 Max has been grounded worldwide following the second of the crashes, in March, and it remains unclear when it will be cleared for service.
CEO Muilenburg will face lawmakers for the first time since the crashes in a House transportation committee hearing scheduled for October 30.
The company’s board removed Meilenburg as chairman last week, saying he should focus on the CEO job and bring the plane back into service.