“We are really sorry”, writes a group manager to employees, after the problems with the 737 MAX 9

“Our long-term objective is to improve quality,” Stan Deal, head of the commercial aircraft branch, wrote to employees.

The boss of Boeing’s commercial aircraft branch apologized in a message to employees for the American manufacturer’s latest setbacks, at a time when 737 MAX 9s are returning to the air. “We are truly sorry for the significant disruption and frustration for our customers”declared Stan Deal in a message to his employees, sent by Boeing to the press.

A few hours earlier, an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 made its first commercial flight since the flight suspension decided by the American regulator (FAA) following the incident on January 5. That day, a blocked cabin door on an Alaska Airlines plane came loose in flight. Since the suspension of flights decided by the FAA, “our goal was to help our customers get back to business”declared the boss of the commercial aircraft branch in his message to his teams.

An audit carried out by an independent personality

From now on, “our long-term objective is to improve quality in order to regain the trust of our customers, our regulator and the people who fly”added Stan Deal. “Frankly, we disappointed them, we let them down”, he even declared before apologizing. Some 10,000 Boeing employees stopped work on the 737 MAX production line near Seattle to “refocus on safety and discuss ways to improve our practices”according to Stan Deal.

The latest incident on the Alaska Airlines flight, following other production problems in recent months, has prompted the FAA and the plane maker itself to dissect its quality control process, and an independent person has been appointed to lead an audit.