A Crash Course in Boeing’s Wrongdoings
By SERA MISHRA
When you ask any adolescent what superpower they would want to have, almost every time they will say they want to fly. Humans have become obsessed with touching the sky, but as our aspirations raise higher we cannot forget to ground ourselves as well. As the Wright Brothers flew their first plane, they spurred a phenomenon and cultural revolution. Ironically, soaring too high is where Boeing went wrong in their endeavors as their planes plummeted to the Earth on October 29, 2018 and March 10, 2019.
Two of Boeing’s 737 Max 8 jets killed 346 people - with less than five months between each malfunction - in the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. People have become afraid to enter the devices they once depended on. What Boeing did not realize when taking liberties in self-certification is that they have lost the trust of the common people for every airline company in the nation, even in the world. Now, as someone boards a plane, no matter where they are going or how far, he/she will wonder ‘am I safe?’
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has a history of initiating an “oversight strategy,” meaning that they will leave certain checks to the airline companies themselves. This means that instead of being closely examined, Boeing green-lighted a faulty model that was responsible for killing many. That blood is on their hands, and hopefully has served to teach a lesson.
Pilots and aeronautic specialists alike believe that Boeing will pick itself up again and come back stronger. They have had tough struggles in the past, but have never been as exposed in the media as they are now. Flighty promises of a software changes can help, but will not solve the problem; Boeing needs to make the expensive, long-term alterations they have been so hesitant to make.
Whether the FAA or Boeing was responsible for these tragedies, it is unknown; it is only known that they will both be limited and reformed because of their actions (or more likely inaction). We will not smile anymore as we see planes speed above us, but we will pray for those in the aircraft.