Cantwell on Boeing: “The Company Needs to Move Back to Seattle”

07.31.24

Cantwell on Boeing: "The Company Needs to Move Back to Seattle"

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Earlier today, speaking to reporters after chairing an executive session of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), had this to say about news that Boeing selected Kelly Ortberg as its new CEO.

"The company needs to move back to Seattle. The notion that somebody thinks they can run the company from anywhere other than Seattle is a big mistake." [LINK]

Sen. Cantwell later released this full statement:

"It's a good first step that the CEO will be based in Seattle, and now the rest of the headquarters needs to move back home to rejoin our world-class aviation workforce. When it comes to quality and safety, being close to the workforce on the ground matters."

Yesterday, Sen. Cantwell announced she sent a letter to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Michael Whitaker requesting the FAA conduct a root cause analysis to determine any deficiencies in its own oversight of Boeing and other aviation manufacturers.

The letter follows Sen. Cantwell's most recent Committee hearing on aviation safety, where FAA Administrator Whitaker said the agency was "too hands off" on its oversight of Boeing. Following the Alaska Airlines flight 1282 incident in January, Sen. Cantwell requested that FAA perform a special technical audit of Boeing's production line. The FAA said the audit found multiple instances where Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.

Additionally, Sen. Cantwell held an April hearing to review the independent Organization Designation Authorization (ODA) Expert Review Panel's final report, and a March hearing with National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy on its investigation of the January incident.

In May, Sen. Cantwell led the passage of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, which includes new measures to improve aviation safety, such as putting more safety inspectors on factory floors, addressing the nation's shortage of air traffic controllers, deploying new runway technology to prevent close calls, mandating new 25-hour cockpit recording systems to assist in investigations, and enhancing aircraft certification reforms.

The FAA Reauthorization Act builds upon the Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act of 2020, spearheaded by Sen. Cantwell in the aftermath of the Boeing 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019.

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