Reference no: EM133665446

Crashes

• On October 29, 2018, Lion Air flight 610 crashed shortly after departure from Jakarta, Indonesia, killing all 189 on board

• Then, On March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 crashed shortly after departure from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, reportedly resulting in 157 fatalities Findings Angle-of-attack (AOA) sensors:

• It has been disclosed that pilots flying the same aircraft the previous day experienced some sort of navigation system failure.

- The maintenance records revealed ongoing problems with the aircraft's airspeed and angle-of-attack (AOA) sensors that monitor relative aircraft pitch.

- The automatic safety system continually pushed the plane's nose down

• The investigation also revealed that aircraft documentation and pilot training may not have fully explained how the automation would respond under these circumstances.

• FAA has focused on the AOA sensors and flight control logic contained in a Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), a flight control feature that is new to the 737 MAX. Investigators found that both crashes were caused in part by a flawed automated flight control system called MCAS. Consequences

• The circumstances of these crashes led several airlines and several countries, including China and the European Union, to immediately ground 737 MAX airplanes until a fix can be found. The global impact of the safety concerns surrounding the Boeing 737 MAX illustrates a need for international cooperation and coordination regarding air safety and aviation accident investigation. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) designates staff to serve as accredited representatives of the United States in foreign accident investigations involving U.S.-manufactured or U.S.-operated aircraft. The 737 MAX crashes potentially raise broader concerns regarding the design of highly automated flight control systems and pilots' understanding of and interaction with those systems. Boeing has agreed to pay a $200 million penalty to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges that the company misled investors and the public about the safety of the 737 Max after two of the planes crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people. Question Based on your analysis of the Boeing 737 Max crashes, discuss how the failure to adhere to SQA principles contributed to the root cause of these incidents. Provide specific examples from the readings and the FRONTLINE video to support your argument.

• Discuss how QA management practices could have helped identify and mitigate the issues that led to the crashes.

• What, in your opinion, was the root cause of the crashes? Summarize how this issue led to the overall failure of the System, and what would be your recommendation.

• Was the process sufficiently followed to qualify the new software and its applications? If not, what would you have recommended? Attach citations if any.