Boeing 737 Max - Could Boeing's clout at US aviation authority trump safety?

LONDON — Roughly two-thirds of the world, including South Africa have grounded the Boeing 737 Max as airlines see a connection between the crash of an Ethiopian Airline jet that killed 157 people and a similar disaster involving the same plane last October in which 189 people were killed when a Lion Air flight crashed into the Java Sea in Indonesia. Yet, America’s Federal Aviation Authority decided not to take action and said it had no basis to order the grounding of the aircraft. This is despite pressure from several senior politicians in the US and two unions representing flight attendants calling for it. The New York Times says there is a very cosy relationship between Boeing and the FAA, and Boeing could even choose its own employees to sit on the authority and help to certify planes. President Donald Trump initially tweeted that he thought aeroplanes were becoming far too complex to fly, “Pilots are no longer needed, but rather computer scientists from MIT”, he tweeted after the Ethiopian crash. He has a very close relationship with Boeing and the FAA decision on standing by the safety of the Boeing 737 Max came after a telephone conversation between President Trump and Boeing Chief Dennis Muilenburg. This raises the question whether Boeing’s influence at the FAA is the reason for the United States’ decision to keep the Boeing 737 Max in the air raising serious safety concerns for passengers who are likely to choose not to fly on the jet. Bloomberg’s Jim Alice explains to Carol Massar how important the Boeing 737 Max is to Boeing’s profitability… - Linda van Tilburg
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