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Boeing 737 MAX

Letter to Congress on FAA’s Oversight of the Boeing 737 MAX Angle-of-Attack Disagree Alert and the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System

We issued a letter to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and its Subcommittee on Aviation in response to a request that we review the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) oversight of two key areas on the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. Our objectives were to evaluate FAA’s oversight activities of two targeted elements of the 737 MAX: (1) the inoperability of the angle-of-attack (AOA) disagree alert on the majority of the MAX fleet in 2019 and (2) the inclusion of the maneuvering characteristics augmentation system (MCAS) as part of the speed trim in the 737 MAX design.

Audit Initiated of FAA’s Oversight of the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System and the Angle-of-Attack Disagree Indicator on Boeing MAX Aircraft

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is responsible for overseeing the safety and certification of all civilian aircraft manufactured and operated in the United States. During the original certification process for the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, Boeing included limited information on the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) in its initial briefings to FAA; MCAS was later cited as a contributing factor to two fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019.

Audit Initiated of FAA’s Oversight of Boeing 737 and 787 Production

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is responsible for overseeing the safety of passenger aircraft in the United States, including ensuring that aviation manufacturers such as Boeing meet safety requirements when producing and delivering new aircraft. However, since 2019, a number of concerns have been raised regarding production of the Boeing 737 and 787 aircraft.

Audit Initiated of FAA's Oversight of Boeing 737 MAX Return to Service

On March 13, 2019, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a grounding order for the Boeing 737 MAX fleet after two accidents involving 737 MAX 8 aircraft raised significant safety concerns. At the request of the former Secretary of Transportation and members of Congress, our office has undertaken a series of reviews related to FAA’s certification of the 737 MAX 8 and its safety oversight.

Audit Initiated of FAA's Pilot Training Requirements

On October 29, 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 crashed shortly after departing Jakarta, Indonesia, resulting in 189 fatalities. Five months later, on March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Air Flight 302 crashed shortly after departing Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, resulting in 157 fatalities, including 8 Americans. Both flights involved the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, which was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in March 2017.
 
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