© Reuters. The interior of the Boeing 737 assembly plant is pictured in Renton, Washington February 4, 2014. REUTERS/David Ryder/File Photo
By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The head of Boeing (NYSE:)’s troubled 737 MAX program, Ed Clark, has left the planemaker, according to a memo seen Reuters via biedexmarkets.com, the first major departure since the Jan. 5 mid-air panel blowout of a new Alaska Airlines MAX 9.
The departure comes as regulators, customers and lawmakers have been scrutinizing production and safety measures at the planemaker following the incident. Clark’s departure came after Boeing’s board met this week, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Boeing has scrambled to explain and strengthen safety procedures after the accident on a brand new Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9, when a door panel detached during flight. Clark oversaw the company’s production facility in Renton, Washington, where the plane involved in the accident was completed.
He is being replaced by Katie Ringgold as vice president and general manager, according to the memo, which was sent to staff by Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Stan Deal, who said the planemaker was working to ensure “that every airplane we deliver meets or exceeds all quality and safety requirements. Our customers demand, and deserve, nothing less.”
The memo was first reported by the Seattle Times.
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun plans to meet with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) chief Mike Whitaker next week after the top aviation regulator traveled to Renton, Washington to tour the Boeing 737 plant.
The FAA said Whitaker “will discuss what he observed during his visit to Boeing with the company’s executives when they come to Washington to discuss” the company’s emphasis on their quality control system and other issues.
The FAA grounded the MAX 9 for several weeks in January and has capped Boeing’s production of the MAX while it audits the planemaker’s manufacturing process.
This is the second crisis involving the planemaker in recent years, after two crashes of MAX planes that killed 346 people.
The door panel that flew off the jet appeared to be missing four key bolts, according to a preliminary report from U.S. the U.S. National Safety Transportation Board in early February.
According to the report, the door plug in question was removed to repair rivet damage, but the NTSB has not found evidence the bolts were re-installed.
The disclosure has prompted anger among Boeing’s airline customers, with some including Alaska Airlines announcing it would conduct enhanced quality oversight of its planes at the Boeing factory.
The panel is a plug in place on some 737 MAX 9s instead of an additional emergency exit.
Boeing is still working to rebuild its reputation following the 20-month grounding of the 737 MAX following two fatal crashes that was lifted in November 2020. The latest incident brought more harsh criticism from lawmakers and made the planemaker the butt of jokes from late-night comedy TV hosts.
Boeing shares were down 0.5% on Wednesday.
Boeing has suffered a string of quality issues in recent years. In December, the FAA said a foreign airline had found a bolt with a missing nut in a MAX 737 rudder system and Boeing discovered a case of a nut not properly tightened prompting inspections of all other 737s.
Boeing has previously been force to halt deliveries of the 787 for extended periods because of production issues. The planemaker has paid a number of fines in recent years including $6.6 million in 2021 after the FAA alleged Boeing “failed to follow its quality control processes” involving the 787.
