The Boeing Saga Has Reached A New Level Of Absurdity

If you’re a public relations professional, I can’t imagine a more difficult job now than at Boeing. Aisle six needs to be cleaned, but the entire store, loading dock, and parking lot must be cleaned regularly, if not hourly.

Boeing had to bring out a lot of mops on Thursday. But this time, it may not have been Boeing’s responsibility.

Let me clarify.

Boeing | CNN Image

The Boeing Saga Has Reached A New Level Of Absurdity

On Tuesday, Boeing conducted a news conference from its Renton, Washington, factory to discuss quality improvements.

But Boeing knew it would be questioned about the door plug that blew off a 737 Max during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. So Elizabeth Lund, Boeing’s senior vice president of quality, did not mince words.

Lund began the briefing by explaining why the four bolts required to hold the door plug were placed after the plane left the factory in October: paperwork. My colleagues Gregory Wallace and Chris Isidore noted that the workmen who needed to reinstall the bolts needed to have the work order that specified what needed to be done.

“The fact that one employee could not fill out one piece of paperwork in this condition and could result in an accident was shocking to all of us,” according to Lund.

The lack of documentation was familiar information. The president of the National Transportation Safety Board, the government agency in charge of the inquiry, previously reported it in testimony before the United States Senate Commerce Committee. However, Boeing’s release of that intelligence landed it in hot water with the NTSB.

The agency penalized Boeing on Thursday, saying it had “blatantly violated” its standards.

According to the NTSB, the infraction involved releasing “investigative information” and providing “an analysis of factual information previously released.”

This would be similar to your friend making a public Instagram announcement that she is pregnant, prompting you to post something on your story like, “My best friend is going to be a mom!” And then the friend writes you an angry text requesting that you remove it since it is private information and you are not permitted to comment.

The Boeing Saga Has Reached A New Level Of Absurdity

“As a party to many NTSB investigations over the past decades, few entities know the rules better than Boeing,” the NTSB stated (yes, government agencies throw shade sometimes). However, the NTSB has gone further, stating that it will no longer disclose any information gathered during its inquiry and will send Boeing’s conduct to the Department of Justice, implying that a criminal investigation may be launched.

The NTSB declined to comment on CNN.

Clean up everyone, everywhere.
When the NTSB released its statement, Boeing’s public relations team returned to crisis cleanup mode.

I confess that it’s difficult to believe anything they say, and part of my job as a writer is to be critical and examine any claims made by public relations professionals. But Boeing’s statement to the NTSB has an ounce (or perhaps more like a quarter ounce) of truth.

It held the briefing to “take responsibility” and be honest, and it “shared context on the lessons we have learned from the January 5 accident.”

Boeing | Reuters image

The Boeing Saga Has Reached A New Level Of Absurdity

“We deeply regret that some of our comments, intended to make clear our responsibility in the accident and explain the actions we are taking, overstepped the NTSB’s role as the source of investigative information,” the aerospace company said Thursday.

Without giving Boeing too much credit, some executives attempted to claim a fragment of ownership. However, this is an NTSB violation. At the same time, regulations remain rules, no matter how hypocritical they are. Boeing should have exercised more caution.

When CNN contacted Boeing, a representative replied, “We defer to the NTSB for information regarding the investigation.”

The irony is that the NTSB’s reaction distracts from the more obvious story: how something as simple as a lack of paperwork could have imperiled a plane full of passengers.

SOURCE – CNN