SPEEA, IFPTE Attend NTSB Board Meeting on Boeing Door Plug Separation

SPEEA/IFPTE Local 2001 Director of Strategic Development, Rich Plunkett, along with International Legislative Director Faraz Khan, and President Matt Biggs, attended this week’s National Safety Transportation Board (NTSB) meeting in Washington, DC to determine the probable cause of the in-flight separation of a mid-exit door plug on a Boeing 737-9 passenger airplane near Portland, Oregon last year.

During the meeting, NTSB board members and investigators discussed the probable cause of the separation and the NTSB safety recommendations for both Boeing and the FAA, designed to prevent similar accidents.  Plunkett, who served as a member of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Organization Designation Authorization Expert Panel in 2023 and 2024, commented on the meeting:  “Chair Homendy made clear that this was not simply one or two Boeing employees that failed to re-apply bolts to the door plug, but rather a systemic failure resulting from a series of avoidable missteps.  SPEEA has and continues to urge Boeing to put in place the Aviation Safety Action Plan that SPEEA has proposed, provide labor greater involvement in the effective implementation of the company’s Safety Management System, and disavow their Union containment policy that creates a disincentive for workers to report safety concerns.”   

Legislative Director Khan also weighed in, adding, “IFPTE thanks the NTSB for their thorough investigation of this incident and is hopeful that Boeing and the FAA strongly consider adopting all of the FAA recommendations outlined here today and in their report.” 

See the preliminary NTSB report and recommendations, and video of the meeting.