Aircraft
Transportation IG Sees Continuing Oversight Weakness at FAA
The FAA must develop a “risk-based approach” to ODA oversight, according to a DOT IG report on the agency’s response to 737 Max recommendations.
Boeing 737 Maxes sit in storage in Moses Lake, Washington, in October 2019. (Photo: Barry Ambrose)
Boeing 737 Maxes sit in storage in Moses Lake, Washington, in October 2019. (Photo: Barry Ambrose)

Federal investigators have concluded that weaknesses in the FAA’s certification and delegation processes hindered its oversight of the certification of the Boeing 737 Max 8, according to a DOT inspector general’s report published Wednesday. The report found that the agency’s limitations in the FAA’s guidance and certification processes led to a “significant misunderstanding” of the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), the flight control software identified as contributing to the two accidents.