Boeing sanctioned over release of details from 737 MAX midair blowout probe
NY Post
US investigators on Thursday sanctioned Boeing for revealing details of a probe into a 737 MAX midair blowout and said they would refer its conduct to the Justice Department, prompting the embattled planemaker to issue an apology.
The National Transportation Safety Board said Boeing had “blatantly violated” its rules by providing “non-public investigative information” and speculating about possible causes of the Jan. 5 Alaska Airlines door-plug emergency during a factory tour attended by dozens of journalists.
The decision sheds new light on strains between the crisis-hit planemaker and government agencies at a time when it is trying to avoid criminal charges being weighed by the Department of Justice ahead of a July 7 deadline.
“As a party to many NTSB investigations over the past decades, few entities know the rules better than Boeing,” the NTSB said.
The NTSB said Boeing would keep its status as a party to the investigation into the Jan. 5 Alaska Airlines emergency but would no longer see information produced during its probe into the accident, which involved the mid-air blowout of a door plug with four missing bolts.
Unlike other parties, Boeing will now not be allowed to ask questions of other participants at a hearing on August 6-7.
