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Boeing Whistleblower Sam Salehpour Says He Was Put Through Hell
Boeing whistleblower Sam Salehpour told reporters that he went through hell after raising concerns about the safety of the company’s planes.
The Boeing whistleblower Sam Salehpour said his manager berated him in a 40-minute phone call after he testified at a US congressional hearing as part of an investigation into safety at the manufacturing giant Boeing.
The company has struggled since a portion of the body of a new Boeing 737 Max 9, flown by Alaska Airlines, broke off during takeoff in January.
Passengers were not seriously injured, but the event resulted in thousands of flight cancellations and heightened scrutiny on Boeing, which had previously grounded the 737 Max 8 following horrific disasters in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people.
The session brought together three whistleblowers who have emerged as some of the company’s most prominent opponents, including a former safety director at the Federal Aviation Administration.
Mr. Salehpour, who has worked at the Boeing center at Tech Port for 17 years, frequently raised concerns about potential manufacturing shortcuts over three years beginning in 2020, only to be instructed: “To shut up.”
“I was ignored, and I was told not to create delays,” he said, adding that he was later transferred to a different function. “This is not a safety culture, where you get threatened [for] bringing issues.”
Senator Richard Blumenthal, who chaired the session, stated that his committee would investigate the matter. He added that just the notice of the hearing motivated other whistleblowers to come forward.
“This story is serious, even shocking,” he claimed. “There are mounting serious allegations that Boeing has a broken safety culture and set of unacceptable practices.” He described it as a “moment of reckoning” for Boeing and promised future hearings with corporate leaders.
Boeing stated that retaliation was “strictly prohibited” and that it had observed a “more than 500% increase” in complaints from employees since January, “which signals progress toward a robust reporting culture that is not fearful of retaliation”.
“We continue to put safety and quality above all else and share information transparently with our regulator, customers and other stakeholders,” according to the business.
A preliminary government inquiry into what occurred on the Alaska Airlines flight discovered that fasteners were missing from the component that blew off. The corporation is now under criminal investigation and facing other lawsuits.
The director of the National Transportation Safety Board has chastised Boeing and accused it of failing to fully cooperate with the investigation.
Another hearing witness, former Boeing manager Ed Pierson, who is now the executive director of the Foundation for Aviation Safety, accused the company of a “criminal cover-up” following the layoffs, claiming that he shared documents about the missing bolts with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
“There are some real problems at Boeing that need to be fixed,” Senator Ron Johnson said, citing the push from all sides to keep jets flying.
“We all want Boeing to succeed,” he explained. “People do not want to take the steps that may be required here. I believe that is an unpleasant truth.”
Mr Salehpour’s concerns centered on the Boeing 787, a larger aircraft not involved in the Alaska Airlines flight or other fatal incidents but plagued by manufacturing troubles.
He stated that the elements of the plane’s body were not correctly linked, increasing the danger of breakdown over time.
He expressed his concerns about the Boeing center at TechPort to the FAA in January and made them public earlier this month.
The FAA has stated that it is investigating the allegations, which Boeing has denied.
Days after the Boeing 737 production strike began, Mr. Salehpour felt obligated to speak up. He recalls a carpool mate who had worked on the Challenger shuttle and had his warnings ignored.
The shuttle exploded in flight in 1986.
He claimed that Boeing had responded to his concerns with pressure and punishment, making it more difficult for him to attend doctor’s appointments.
Meanwhile, in Boeing 787 Dreamliner news, United Airlines, one of Boeing’s largest clients, has stated that it will receive compensation from the jet manufacturer for the financial impact of the 737 MAX 9 grounding.
Following the January Alaska Airlines incident, United had to ground its Boeing 737 MAX 9 fleet for three weeks.
