Hearing seeks insight into blowout on a Boeing jet

Gee, imagine being pressured to do your job. I’m sure that never happens in any other workplace.

Boeing factory workers say they were pressured to work too fast and asked to perform jobs that they weren’t qualified for, including opening and closing the door plug that later blew off an Alaska Airlines jet. Those accounts from inside the company were disclosed Tuesday, as federal investigators opened a two-day hearing into the blowout, which further tarnished Boeing’s safety reputation and left it facing new legal jeopardy. A Boeing door installer said he was never told to take any shortcuts but everyone faced pressure to keep the assembly line moving. The panel that blew off the Boeing 737 Max in January was made and installed by a supplier, Spirit AeroSystems. It was removed at a Boeing factory so that workers could repair damaged rivets, but bolts that help secure the door plug weren’t replaced. It’s not clear who removed the panel.