Boeing said the head of its 737 jetliner program is leaving the aerospace giant immediately, just a month after an emergency door panel blew off one of its Max 9 jets on an Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon.
Ed Clark, the general manager of the 737 program and Boeing’s factory in Renton, Wash., will leave the aircraft maker after 18 years at the company. He will be succeeded by Katie Ringgold, who currently supervises deliveries of the jets to customers. Boeing also announced the appointment of Elizabeth Lund to a new senior vice president position at Boeing Commercial Airplane, where she will oversee quality control amid heightened regulatory scrutiny.
After the incident last month, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it would investigate Boeing’s manufacturing processes and production lines, as well as those of supply subcontractor Spirit AeroSystems. The incident also led the regulator to ground the 737 Max 9 for several weeks; although the jets have since been cleared to resume flying, the FAA has limited Boeing’s production of the 737 Max.
“We are aggressively expanding oversight of new aircraft with increased floor presence at all Boeing facilities to ensure Boeing is delivering safe airplanes,” FAA administrator Michael Whitaker said in a statement last week. His comments came after the FAA chief visited Boeing’s 737 production line and met with company personnel and FAA employees.
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board — which has not yet completed its investigation into the incident — released a preliminary report relaying its findings earlier this month. U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, who represents Washington state, has said she plans to hold hearings to investigate Boeing’s safety lapses.
In addition to the heightened oversight, Boeing has been sued by the passengers of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 over the alleged injuries they suffered because of the incident, which include “intense fear, distress, anxiety, trauma,” and physical pain.