A prominent Boeing whistleblower released new documents Thursday that point to confusion and chaos in the company’s Renton factory as it built two 737 MAX planes that later crashed, killing 346 people on board in 2018 and 2019.
Production issues back then still affect MAX planes flying today, alleged Ed Pierson, a former Boeing manager.
The released documents include an internal Boeing record that shows a slew of electrical issues were discovered as Boeing assembled the Ethiopian Airlines jet that crashed in 2019.
A report from the Federal Aviation Administration in 2018 found employees in another Boeing facility in Everett, where workers prepare electrical parts that are later put on the planes, were pushed to move too fast and produced defective pieces.
Communications between Boeing and Ethiopian Airlines show the plane that later crashed experienced an in-flight safety incident months before the fatal accident. Boeing told the airline that the December 2018 incident was likely the result of an electrical error, the records show.
The whistleblower, Pierson, said the records and the earlier safety incident bolster his view that the deadly crash of the Ethiopian jet may have been initiated by an electrical problem. That problem traces back to production issues with electrical wire bundles that Pierson has highlighted.
Advertising
The Foundation for Aviation Safety, an advocacy group that Pierson formed after the crashes to investigate commercial...
Topline Alexander Smirnov, the former FBI informant who was accused earlier this year of making false statements about President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden, was indicted Tuesday on unrelate...