Boeing Unifies Safety Responsibilities--2nd Update
September 30 2019 - 4:46PM
Dow Jones News
By Doug Cameron
Boeing Co. instituted a second set of internal changes aimed at
bolstering its aircraft-safety culture in the wake of twin fatal
crashes involving its 737 MAX jetliner.
The company said Monday that it would centralize safety
oversight in a new unit to enhance such efforts and channel any
concerns raised by employees. The move mirrors recommendations
issued recently by a board committee set up to review Boeing's
aircraft design and manufacturing processes.
The newly created Product and Services Safety Organization will
be headed by Boeing veteran Beth Pasztor, reporting to Chief
Engineer Greg Hyslop and a board-level committee that includes
Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg.
The announcement came on the day Boeing had previously set as
its deadline for delivering software fixes on the MAX to U.S.
regulators. Some airlines, such as Ryanair Holdings PLC, have said
they don't expect those changes to be submitted until October,
based on their communications with the aircraft maker.
Boeing didn't comment on when it would submit the software
updates. It hasn't updated its July guidance that it expects
regulators would approve the 737 MAX jetliner's return to flight
early in the fourth quarter. The aircraft has been grounded
globally since mid-March.
The safety-oversight revamp comes after the company last week
amended its governance rules to make safety-related experience a
criterion for choosing future directors. Two of the three most
recent recruits to Boeing's board -- Nikki Haley and Caroline
Kennedy -- have political backgrounds. The third, Robert Bradway,
CEO of drugmaker Amgen Inc., has experience with federal
regulators.
Ms. Pasztor previously served as head of safety, security and
compliance at Boeing's commercial jetliner arm. She will also
oversee its existing accident-investigations team and safety-review
boards, as well as Boeing staff delegated to handle aircraft
certification work for the Federal Aviation Administration.
Boeing also said Monday that it had expanded an anonymous
reporting system for employees to flag concerns and strengthened
existing safeguards such as safety review boards.
Write to Doug Cameron at doug.cameron@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 30, 2019 16:31 ET (20:31 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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