Boeing Shares Drop After FAA Orders Inspection Of 2,600 737 Jets For Oxygen Mask Issue

Shares of Boeing in New York hit turbulence a little after lunchtime as yet another problem emerged for the 737 Max program. 

Reuters reports the Federal Aviation Administration is mandating inspections for 2,600 737 MAX and NG jets because passenger oxygen masks could fail during in-flight emergencies.

Here’s more from the report:

The FAA said it was requiring the inspections of 737 MAX and NG airplanes after multiple reports of passenger service unit oxygen generators shifting out of position, an issue that could result in an inability to provide supplemental oxygen to passengers during a depressurization event.

…

The FAA said its airworthiness directive was immediately effective and requires inspections and corrective actions if needed within 120 to 150 days based on the 737 model. The FAA is also barring airlines from installing potentially defective parts.

Airlines must conduct a general visual inspection and if needed replace oxygen generators with new or serviceable oxygen generators, strap thermal pads and reposition impacted oxygen generators, the agency said.

As much as 3.6% of today’s gains evaporated after Reuters published the report.

Boeing is stuck in an endless doom-doop cycle of crises and investigations. On Sunday, The New York Times reported that Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge of conspiring to defraud the federal government over two deadly 737 Max crashes. 

In recent weeks, outgoing Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Investigations regarding ongoing investigations into Boeing’s quality oversight and production failures of commercial jets.

Calhoun said the company is ‘changing course’ on outsourcing parts of the supply chain. The company has been in talks with key supplier Spirit AeroSystems for a buyout of about $4.7 billion. 

The executives at Boeing have destroyed one of the world’s greatest aviation brands as competitor Airbus flies ahead.