The downfall of Boeing • Guardian article on Netflix doc.

[Garfly]

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/feb/22/downfall-the-case-against-boeing-netflix-documentary-737-max

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[kgwilson]

Netflix sent me an email saying this met my interest level by 90%. I'll have a look at it. I followed the whole sorry affair through various news channels at the time and there were a number of threads on this site that discussed the affair as well. It is interesting that they chose the same name for the Doco as one of the best German movies ever made about Hitlers last days in the Bunker with advancing Russians pounding Berlin. A bit of irony there I reckon.

[skippydiesel]

Just a reminder to all of us plebeians - Government AND its bureaucrats are for hire 

[facthunter]

More about self regulation becomes NO regulation. Profit before safety. Nev

[johnm]

the MCAS system was disguised in the operating procedure by Boeing - the FAA and pilots (and probably Boeing) were not aware of its significance 

 

this program also made the point that when all those 737's were grounded away from base - there were few airline pilots offering to fly them back to base 

[kgwilson]

It has been pouring rain all day & i just watched the Netflix doco. Nothing new at all other than they traced Boeings culture change from engineering & safety to profit when the merger with Mcdonnell Douglas took place in 1996 & stock price became the main driver along with the transfer of the head office from Seattle to Chicago. The race with Airbus became acute when the A320 Neo came out & they had no answer at the time, Airbus market share was greater than Boeings & the decision to slap huge fuel efficient engines on to a 1960s design aircraft was a quick fix.

 

They briefly covered the reduction in Quality assurance , control, FOD left all through aircraft during builds including a ladder left in the horizontal stabiliser of one. They also briefly mentioned whistleblowers and anyone who queried the manufacturing practices would be fired, moved on or out. Nothing was mentioned of the stuff that went on with poor quality components being supplied by 3rd parties etc. Most of it was about how the victims were ignored & Boeing tried to cover everything up right to the end. 

 

If you followed the issue from the Lion Air Crash the only interesting thing was that Lion Air did not know anything about the MCAS system but they did request Boeing to provide simulator training & this was flatly refused by Boeing who in a number of memos likened them to idiots or monkeys. That had nothing to do with a Boeing employee writing an internal memo in 2017 when he said the "737 Max was designed by Clowns & built by monkeys."

 

Boeing has survived largely because of their military contracts with the US Gov't, though the stock price is half what it was & they have big ongoing issues with the 787. Boeing escaped criminal conviction by paying a $2.5 billion fine & they paid off the victims families. Money solves everything. Ex CEO Dennis Muilenburg who was fired got a $62 million golden handshake.

Edited February 24, 2022 by kgwilson

[skippydiesel]

I find it quite extraordinary that criminal actions (for that is what they are) of the big end of town,  like those kgwilson mentions can be overlooked by paying money AND on top of that a sacrificial lamb (CEO) is paid enough to quietly retire into luxury 62 times over.

 

We live in obscene times when human life, contrary to all our moral teaching, is actually worth very little in the face of greed & the lust for power.

 

Me thinks we have not evolved much past our knuckle dragging forbears.

 

It is past time for us as species to revaluate the mechanisms by which we elevating individuals to power & authority - why do nearly always select psychopaths?