Investigation into FAA Wednesday, March 20, 2019
Washington, D.C. – Today, Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR), and Chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation Rick Larsen (D-WA) sent a letter to the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Calvin L. Scovel III, requesting an investigation into the Federal Aviation Administration’s approach to certifying the Boeing 737 MAX. “The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is committed to making the world’s safest transportation system even safer. We understand that fully investigating the probable cause or causes of these accidents will take some time. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is the U.S. Accredited Representative assisting with the investigation and we have full faith in its thorough process and expert personnel to conduct a rigorous review. However, while the NTSB will examine these two accidents, we request that your office assess the FAA’s approach to certifying the Boeing 737 MAX. Regardless of the specific factors that led to these accidents, we believe such an examination can help enhance the effectiveness of the FAA certification process overall and identify improvements to oversight and safety of all new aircraft,” the Members wrote. Dear Inspector General Scovel: Every day, more than 2.6 million passengers take off and land safely in the United States—a total of nearly 965 million passengers in 2017.[1] However, two recent accidents involving the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in Indonesia and Ethiopia, resulting in a total of 346 fatalities in five months, have raised legitimate safety concerns among the flying public, aircraft experts, regulators, and legislators.[2] While the investigations into the accidents are not complete, early indications suggest the two accidents are linked, underscoring the need to take a more proactive approach with safety to protect the traveling public. The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is committed to making the world’s safest transportation system even safer. We understand that fully investigating the probable cause or causes of these accidents will take some time. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is the U.S. Accredited Representative assisting with the investigation and we have full faith in its thorough process and expert personnel to conduct a rigorous review. However, while the NTSB will examine these two accidents, we request that your office assess the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) approach to certifying the Boeing 737 MAX. Regardless of the specific factors that led to these accidents, we believe such an examination can help enhance the effectiveness of the FAA certification process overall and identify improvements to oversight and safety of all new aircraft. Therefore, your review should, at a minimum, focus on the following areas: We appreciate your attention to this matter. If you have any questions regarding this request, please contact Douglas Pasternak on the Majority staff at (202) 226-1871. Sincerely, Peter A. DeFazio Rick Larsen Chairman Chair Committee on Transportation Subcommittee on Aviation and Infrastructure [1] See: “Air Traffic By The Numbers,” Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, accessed here: https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/by_the_numbers/ and “Passengers: All Carriers-All Airports,” Bureau of Transportation Statistics, U.S. Department of Transportation, accessed here: https://www.transtats.bts.gov/Data_Elements.aspx?Data=1 [2] Lion Air Flight #610 crashed on October 29, 2018 when departing the Jakarta, Indonesia international airport killing all 189 onboard. On March 10, 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Flight #302 crashed shortly after takeoff from the Addis Ababa airport killing all 157 passengers. See: Helen Regan and Masrur Jamaluddin, “Boeing issues operational manual guidance to airlines following Lion Air crash,” CNN, November 7, 2018, accessed here: https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/07/asia/boeing-airline-advice-lion-air-intl/index.html; and Aaron Maasho, Duncan Miriri, David Shepardson, “U.S. says 737 MAX safe to fly after Ethiopia crash,” Reuters, March 11, 2019, accessed here: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-airplane/after-ethiopia-crash-horror-some-nations-ground-boeing-737-max-8s-idUSKBN1QS15F |
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