SAN FRANCISCO, June 28 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced sanctions against Boeing on Thursday after the company "blatantly violated" regulations by revealing non-public investigative information about a door-plug blowout incident on a passenger jet in January.
During a media briefing Tuesday, a Boeing executive provided investigative information about the incident involving a Boeing 737 Max 9 of Alaska Airlines and gave an analysis of factual information previously released.
The NTSB said both of these actions are prohibited by the party agreement that Boeing signed when it was offered party status by the NTSB at the start of the investigation. "As a party to many NTSB investigations over the past decades, few entities know the rules better than Boeing," the agency said in a statement.
Boeing will retain its party status, but no longer have access to the investigative information the NTSB produces as it develops the factual record of the accident, it said.
The NTSB said it may subpoena any relevant records it requires during the course of the investigation. It will also subpoena the company to appear at an investigative hearing into the case scheduled for Aug. 6-7 in Washington, D.C. "Unlike the other parties in the hearing, Boeing will not be allowed to ask questions of other participants."
After the NTSB learned of the unauthorised release of information and requested additional information about the press briefing, Boeing provided the agency with a transcript.
In the briefing, Boeing portrayed the NTSB investigation as a search to locate the individual responsible for the door plug work. The NTSB is instead focused on the probable cause of the accident, not placing blame on any individual or assessing liability, according to its statement.
-- BERNAMA-XINHUA
