Company Violated Party Agreement

An unnamed Boeing executive disclosed non-public information related to the investigation of a door plug that blew off a 737 Max 9 operated by Alaska Airlines in January 2024. 

NTSB said the executive discussed his analysis of previously released information and certain “investigative information” during a media briefing on June 25. Both actions were in “blatant violation” of the party agreement Boeing signed at the beginning of the investigation, the agency said.

As a result, the NTSB imposed sanctions on Boeing which limit the participation of the company as the investigation proceeds. Among those are that Boeing will not be informed of, or have access to, information the agency develops in building its factual record of the incident. The company will also be prohibited from asking questions of other participants in the investigation, unlike other parties in the hearing. And NTSB will subpoena the company for a hearing scheduled for August 6 and 7 this year.

Boeing apologized to NTSB and said it “will answer any questions as the agency continues its investigation.” The company went on to say, “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.”

Describing the sanctions, NTSB said, “As a party to many NTSB investigations over the past decades, few entities know the rules better than Boeing.”

The NTSB has also said it will refer the matter to the Department of Justice, which is already considering prosecution of Boeing for violation of a deferred prosecution agreement related to two crashes of 737 Max 8 jets that resulted in the deaths of 350 people.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov