FAA's safety check under lens as Boeing unveils software fix

RENTON (WASHINGTON): Boeing on Wednesday made its most overt acknowledgment to date that new software in its jets could have played a role in two deadly crashes as it tries to convince pilots, airlines and regulators around the world that a coming fix will solve the problem.

Before a meeting with more than 200 pilots and airline executives at its factory in Renton, Washington, Boeing, for the first time, publicly laid out its proposed updates to the software as well other changes to the 737 Max that it hopes will get the plane flying again.

The changes would give pilots more control over the system and make it less likely to be set off by faulty data, two issues at the center of the investigations into the crashes. "The rigor and thoroughness of the design and testing that went into the Max gives us complete confidence that the changes we're making will address any of these accidents," Mike Sinnett, Boeing's vice-president for product strategy, said.

The firm, which was eager to complete the plane quickly for competitive reasons, also faced new scrutiny in Washington on Wednesday over the development and certification of the jet, a process that regulators heavily delegated to Boeing. Senators, in two congressional hearings with Boeing's regulators, pressed for more oversight and raised the possibility of overhauling the system.

The acting head of the Federal Aviation Administration, in a hearing of the Senate Commerce Committee's aviation subcommittee, said that the agency initially scrutinized the new software independently, but ultimately left it to Boeing. The official, Daniel Elwell, also said he did not believe the automated system had been tested with a scenario involving a faulty sensor, which was a concern in a Lion Air crash in Indonesia in October.

The FAA has long allowed plane-makers to help certify that their new aircraft meet safety standards. In recent years, Boeing was able to choose its own employees to help regulators approve the 737 Max. Elwell defended the agency's practice, saying the strategy has "consistently produced safe aircraft designs for decades". And he said the agency would need 10,000 more employees and an additional $1.8 billion a year to do all the work now done by designated employees of the firms it regulates

"The FAA decided to do safety on the cheap, which is neither cheap nor safe," said Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal. "The FAA put the fox in charge of the henhouse."

A Boeing official cautioned against drawing any definite conclusions until more is known. "In general, the process has worked and continues to work, and we see no reason to overhaul the process," this official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the investigations.

The Boeing official said that in most crashes, many things go wrong. Based on what is known about the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia, Boeing said it felt that MCAS was in need of updating. "We-'ve seen two accidents now and we believe it is appropriate to make that link in the chain more robust," the official said.

The updated software, which Boeing outlined on Wednesday, will rely on data from two so-called angle of attack sensors, so the plane will not have a single point of failure. It will also make it easier for pilots to override the system, which was originally designed to push down the nose of the plane repeatedly and aggressively. Although the fix is apparently ready, Boeing provided no timetable for installing it.