Group Case Study #$1($Chapter $3)$

The Boeing $737$ Max MCAS Bug

Question #$1$:

I do not believe that Boeing observed the standards laid out for them when it comes to creating safety critical systems. When doing their research, they did find issues with their system and instead of spending the additional resources and time to fix the issue they disregarded it$.$ Just because something has a low chance of occurring doesn$$t mean it won$$t ever occur. Since they knew that slow speed situations could cause a problem, they should have addressed it$.$ While they did use measures to identify software defects, they did not remove the defects but instead emphasized the low likelihood of an issue happening. One of the most critical issues is there was no information on how to manually override the system or even information in the flight manual about the MCAS System. Not enough was done to train pilots or give them information they would need if an issue occurred which resulted in the deaths of many people and the loss of billions of dollars for Boeing.

Question #$2$:

I believe that Boeing$$s decision making could be called unethical. The assistant attorney general said, $$Boeing$$s employees chose the path of profit over candor by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its $737$ Max airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception$($Boghani$,2021).$ It is evident in the resulting losses not only financially but to human life that they fell short on their final product. Unfortunately for Boeing they have had continued issues when it comes to their Boeing $737$ most recently in January $2024$ when the door like panel blew off after takeoff $($Boghani$,2021).$ I wouldn$$t say that Boeing has lost their kingdom since as of $2024$ they do have airplanes that are cleared for use and are still in business even after the multiple lawsuits. The company has made changes to help repair relationships with customers and regulators which has resulted in a new CEO and Boeing successfully being able to come out with new planes $($Boghani$,2021).$

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