(Oct 25): Indonesian investigators found scores of problems and missteps in connection with last year’s fatal Lion Air crash, ranging from design flaws in Boeing Co’s 737 Max airplane to certification failures by US regulators and pilot error.
In a much-anticipated report released Friday, the National Transportation Safety Committee listed its significant findings in connection with the disaster and recommendations to Boeing, Lion Air and aviation authorities in the US and Indonesia. A significant amount of the report centres on a flight-control feature called the Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System, which has also been implicated in an Ethiopian Airlines crash in March.
The extent that investigators faulted Boeing may add pressure on regulators to intensify scrutiny of its best-selling plane, which has turned into one of its worst crises and undermined the credibility of the US aviation regulator. Boeing Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenburg, who was stripped of his role as chairman earlier this month, is due to face questions from lawmakers in Washington next week.
