Boeing HQ
Today’s key story about Boeing is that a Singapore Airlines 777-300ER en route from London Heathrow to Singapore encountered very severe turbulence, killing one passenger and injuring 30 others who needed hospitalization. Our condolences to the families of the deceased individual and the other injured passengers.
The 777-300ER is one of the world’s safest airplanes, and has a stellar safety record, but this news comes at a bad time for Boeing, who are facing issues with multiple programs, quality escapes, delayed deliveries, and regulatory investigations. The timing couldn’t be worse for another negative story for Boeing. One tabloid outlet from the UK talks about passengers boycotting Boeing aircraft again, which in this case is not called for, nor a problem with the safety of Boeing aircraft. A campaign to always wear seat belts on board would likely have more positive results.
The good news of the day is that Boeing is anchoring an R&D complex in Montreal, with a $240 million investment to bolster Quebec aerospace innovation. This should have been our lead story, absent the Singapore Airlines story, which overshadowed it. It is a positive for both Boeing, and the P-8A Poseidon program that has been selected by Canada as their future maritime patrol aircraft.
In other news, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary commented on the Boeing CEO situation, stating that it didn’t matter as long as the Commercial unit CEO Stephanie Pope and her team continue to make progress on 737 MAX quality issues and can ramp production to meet delivery schedules. He praised the progress made to date, noting the quality of aircraft they are receiving has improved, but is still unhappy about not receiving airplanes on time.
Links to today’s key stories follow:
- Singapore Airlines flight dropped 6,000 feet in turbulence horror that left 1 dead, several injured – Hindustan Times
- More turbulence for Boeing from Mother Nature – AirInsight
- Boeing anchors new C$415 million ‘innovation zone’ in Montreal area – Ottawa Citizen
- Boeing trials new cabin technologies – Aviation Business News
- Frightened flyers renew Boeing boycott after Singapore Airlines… – Daily Mail
- Starliner remains parked as Boeing faces further engineering challenges – Supercluster
- Boeing is investing C$70 million into its flying car business – Quartz
The Bottom Line
The story on the Starliner delays, and expectations for additional delays, is typical for Boeing these days. While the overall design looks good, the execution details leave problems to be resolved before things can move forward. This sounds just like the aircraft delivery issues with multiple quality problems, and is perhaps a reflection on Boeing’s culture and manufacturing practices. Do similar results in different divisions reflect a consistent message from the top level of the organization, where they meet? It would seem so.
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