Boeing under microscope in Washington after high-profile accidents

Congress is eyeing more government oversight of Boeing after a series of high-profile accidents have launched multiple investigations into the company’s practices and temporarily barred the airplane manufacturer from increasing production.  

Boeing has been under intense scrutiny after a panel blew off one of the company’s 737 Max 9 jetliners in midflight on Jan. 5. An investigation found no bolts had been installed to secure the plug, which blew out shortly after the Alaska Airlines flight took off.  

The Justice Department launched a criminal investigation into Boeing last week after the company admitted that it couldn’t find records that the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) sought for work done on the panel at its factory. 

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is also investigating Boeing, and FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker has cited “issues around the safety culture.”

“Their priorities have been on production, and not on safety and quality. So what we really are focused on now is shifting that focus from production to safety and quality,” Whitaker told NBC’s “Nightly News” in an interview that aired Tuesday. 

Lawmakers have made it clear that they want to see those changes — and soon, with possible legislation on the way to make sure it happens.  

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which oversees Boeing and the FAA, said there will “absolutely” be further congressional action on the matter.  

Senators must first hammer out a long-term reauthorization of the FAA, due by May 10, which would stipulate more aviation safety inspectors and more direction to the FAA on oversight, Cantwell told The Hill. 

After that, the committee will have FAA officials and manufacturers “come and talk to us about what additional change is needed,” she said.  

And Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), ranking member on the panel, said the FAA “unquestionably” needs to exert more oversight over Boeing given the recent safety problems.  

“This is an ongoing issue. Obviously, what has happened with Boeing in recent months is deeply concerning. The NTSB is engaged in investigation dealing with the Alaska Airlines incident. That investigation needs to proceed to conclusion,” he told The Hill.

“The challenges we’ve seen recently have raised real and material concerns and concerns that need to be addressed.” 

Asked whether the FAA needs to step up oversight of Boeing, Cruz replied, “absolutely,” though he did not say whether he or his colleagues would propose any legislation or resolution to ensure that. 

And Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), who also sits on the committee, said he and his fellow panel members believe there needs to be more FAA oversight of the plane-maker and Congress should push the agency to do that, noting, “Boeing’s a mess.” 

A Boeing spokesperson told The Hill on Wednesday the company is “taking significant action to strengthen safety and quality at Boeing. We are focused on demonstrating change and building trust one airplane at a time. This increased scrutiny — whether from ourselves, from the FAA or from others — will make us better.” 

After an FAA audit found multiple “non-compliance issues in Boeing’s manufacturing process control, parts handling and storage, and product control” earlier this month, the regulator gave Boeing 90 days to come up with a plan to fix the issues. 

In the meantime, the FAA has barred Boeing from increasing production until it demonstrates it has improved its safety standards, according to Whitaker. 

A separate report by federal aviation experts released last month identified “gaps” in the company’s safety culture. 

The review, which began before the Alaskan Airlines blowout, included several safety recommendations, including calls to beef up employees’ understanding of safety culture and protocols, establishing an autonomous investigation process, ensuring anonymity of Boeing’s “Speak Up” program and create a process to capture informal safety-related reports to supervisors and managers. 

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said the audit and review provided “a clear picture of what needs to be done.” Calhoun also promised to come up with a plan that would provide the “profound change” the FAA has demanded. 

Boeing said it has already implemented steps to enhance safety, including weekly compliance checks for all 737 work cells and deploying a Safety Management System to review and reduce “traveled work,” when the manufacturer notes a part is unavailable during final assembly but continues production. 

But Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whose department includes the FAA, on Tuesday said “there are real concerns with quality control at Boeing.” 

“Every time I get on a plane, I know that I’m participating in the safest mode of transportation in America. And I know the people who work very hard to keep it that way. And that’s part of why we’re pressing Boeing so hard,” Buttigieg said at an Axios event in Washington.

Boeing said the company has “taken important steps to foster a safety culture that empowers and encourages all employees to share their voice. But there is more work to do.”

“We will carefully review the panel’s assessment and learn from their findings, as we continue our comprehensive efforts to improve our safety and quality programs,” a spokesperson said.

The company has taken responsibility for the accident and prioritized transparency with lawmakers and regulators, a Boeing spokesperson told The Hill, who noted Boeing’s in-house lobbying team had been in contact with offices for every member of Congress since the Jan. 5 incident.  

Boeing’s sprawling network of lobbyists plays a key role as the company communicates with lawmakers and policymakers amid the ongoing investigations. Boeing is one of the world’s largest aviation and defense companies, and it operates one of Washington’s biggest lobbying operations.  

Boeing spent more than $14.4 million on federal lobbying in 2023, making it the 15th largest spender among myriad organizations engaging with policymakers and the policymaking process, according to federal lobbying disclosures analyzed by the nonpartisan money-in-politics research nonprofit OpenSecrets. 

Of the 109 lobbyists that registered to work on behalf of Boeing in 2023, 78 — nearly three-quarters — had previously worked in the federal government, including five former members of Congress, according to OpenSecrets. 

Last year, 17 firms registered to lobby for Boeing on issues including FAA reauthorization, defense appropriations, NASA aeronautics programs funding and health care and employee benefit issues.  

Boeing has revamped its lobbying operation in the years following fatal 737 Max 8 jet crashes in 2018 and 2019.  

The airline giant brought on Ziad Ojakli as its executive vice president of government operations in October 2021, and three firms that had been longtime lobbyists for Boeing stopped lobbying for them at the end of that year. 

“We were very proud of the work we had done for Boeing for almost a decade. We were surprised when we were let go and I’m sure there’s others that feel the same way.” Sam Geduldig, partner at CGCN, told The Hill. 

A former Boeing consultant told The Hill there was “a danger in just firing a bunch of really well-connected people that worked on very sensitive issues.”  

“They created a bunch of enemies and it’s probably not helpful right now to have all those angry consultants floating around,” they said. 

Boeing has already made one big change to its lobbying operation this year: Cornerstone Government Affairs stopped lobbying for Boeing at the end of February after working together in Washington for more than 14 years. 

The firm has reported receiving more than $3.2 million in lobbying fees from Boeing since it first registered to lobby for the airline giant in 2010, including $320,000 last year. A Boeing spokesperson said the company regularly reviews contracts with consultants and the two “amicably parted ways.” 

The Hill reached out to Cornerstone for comment. 

“Our focus is on the issue at hand — on safety and on quality — and on being as transparent as possible with all of our stakeholders. Our government relations team will continue to communicate transparently and effectively with government officials and policy makers as we move forward,” a Boeing spokesperson said.