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Boeing In The Spotlight As Congress Calls A Whistleblower To Testify About Defects In Planes

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AP - VOR News

Boeing is the focus of back-to-back Senate hearings on Wednesday as Congress investigates allegations of severe safety failings at the troubled aircraft manufacturer.

The Senate Commerce Committee was hearing testimony from members of an expert team that discovered major weaknesses in Boeing’s safety culture. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said the public expects the Federal Aviation Administration and Congress to ensure that boarding one of the company’s planes is safe.

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Boeing In The Spotlight As Congress Calls A Whistleblower To Testify About Defects In Planes

“Commercial air travel is the safest mode of transportation, although recent events have justifiably concerned the flying public. Cruz stated, “The perception is that things are getting worse.”

In a February study, the expert panel stated that, despite reforms made following the Max crashes, Boeing’s safety culture remains faulty, and employees who express concerns may face pressure and punishment.

One of the witnesses, MIT aeronautics instructor Javier de Luis, lost his sister when a Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashed in Ethiopia in 2019.

A second Senate hearing will feature a Boeing engineer who believes that pieces of the 787 Dreamliner’s skin are improperly connected and may eventually fall apart. The whistleblower’s lawyer claims Boeing ignored the engineer’s warnings and prohibited him from speaking with specialists about the problems.

Sam Salehpour, a whistleblower, provided information to the Federal Aviation Administration, which is investigating the quality and safety of Boeing’s manufacturing. Ed Pierson, a former manager on the Boeing 737 program, is also slated to appear before a Senate investigative subcommittee on Wednesday. Two other aircraft technical specialists are also on the witness list.

The Democratic chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s subcommittee, as well as its top Republican, have requested papers dating back six years from Boeing.

One of the witnesses, MIT aeronautics lecturer Javier de Luis, lost his sister when a Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashed in Ethiopia in 2019.A second Senate hearing will feature a Boeing engineer who claims that sections of the skin on 787 Dreamliner jets are not properly fastened and could eventually break apart. The whistleblower’s lawyer says Boeing has ignored the engineer’s concerns and prevented him from talking to experts about fixing the defects.

The whistleblower, Sam Salehpour, sent documents to the Federal Aviation Administration, which is investigating the quality and safety of Boeing’s manufacturing. Also scheduled to testify before a Senate investigations subcommittee Wednesday is Ed Pierson, a former manager on the Boeing 737 program. Two other aviation technical experts are on the witness list as well.

The Democrat who chairs the subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and its senior Republican have asked Boeing for troves of documents going back six years.

The lawmakers are seeking all records about manufacturing of Boeing 787 and 777 planes, including any safety concerns or complaints raised by Boeing employees, contractors or airlines. Some of the questions seek information about Salehpour’s allegations about poorly fitted carbon-composite panels on the Dreamliner.

A Boeing spokesperson said the company is cooperating with the lawmakers’ inquiry and offered to provide documents and briefings.

The company says claims about the 787’s structural integrity are false. Two Boeing engineering executives said this week that in both design testing and inspections of planes — some of them 12 years old — there have been no findings of fatigue or cracking in the composite panels. They suggested that the material, formed from carbon fibers and resin, is nearly impervious to fatigue that is a constant worry with conventional aluminum fuselages.

The Boeing officials also dismissed another of Salehpour’s allegations: that he saw factory workers jumping on sections of fuselage on 777s to make them align.

Salehpour is the latest whistleblower to emerge with allegations about manufacturing problems at Boeing. The company has been pushed into crisis mode since a door-plug panel blew off a 737 Max jetliners during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. Investigators are focusing on four bolts that were removed and apparently not replaced during a repair job in Boeing’s factory.

The company faces a criminal investigation by the Justice Department and separate investigations by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board.

CEO David Calhoun, who will step down at the end of the year, has said many times that Boeing is taking steps to improve its manufacturing quality and safety culture. He called the blowout on the Alaska jet a “watershed moment” from which a better Boeing will emerge.

There is plenty of skepticism about comments like that.

“We need to look at what Boeing does, not just what it says it’s doing,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, said before Wednesday’s hearing.

The FAA is also likely to take some hits. Duckworth said that until recently, the agency “looked past far too many of Boeing’s repeated bad behaviors,” particularly when it certified the 737 Max nearly a decade ago. Two Max jets crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people, after faulty activations of a flight-control system that FAA did not fully understand.

The leaders of the Senate investigations subcommittee have also requested FAA documents about its oversight of Boeing.

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Boeing In The Spotlight As Congress Calls A Whistleblower To Testify About Defects In Planes

The senators want all information about the production of Boeing 787 and 777 planes, including any safety issues or complaints submitted by Boeing employees, contractors, or airlines. Some issues concern Salehpour’s claims about poorly installed carbon-composite panels on the Dreamliner.

A Boeing spokeswoman stated that the business is working with the MPs’ probe and has offered to share papers and briefings.

The business denies accusations regarding the 787’s structural integrity. This week, two Boeing engineering officials stated that no fatigue or cracking in the composite panels was discovered during design testing or inspections of planes, some of which were 12 years old. They claimed that the material, composed of carbon fibers and resin, is practically immune to fatigue, a continual concern with conventional aluminum fuselages.

Boeing executives also denied Salehpour’s claim that he had witnessed production workers jumping on fuselage parts on 777s to position them.

Salehpour is the latest whistleblower to come forward with allegations of production difficulties at Boeing. The business was plunged into crisis mode when a door-plug panel blew off a 737 Max jet during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. Investigators focused on four bolts removed but not reinstalled during a repair procedure at Boeing’s manufacturing.

The Justice Department has launched a criminal inquiry into the company, while the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are conducting separate probes.

CEO David Calhoun, who will step down at the end of the year, has repeatedly stated that Boeing is working to enhance its manufacturing quality and safety culture. He described the blowout on the Alaska jet as a “watershed moment” that will result in a better Boeing.

Such comments are met with widespread suspicion.

One of the witnesses, MIT aeronautics lecturer Javier de Luis, lost his sister when a Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashed in Ethiopia in 2019.A second Senate hearing will feature a Boeing engineer who claims that sections of the skin on 787 Dreamliner jets are not properly fastened and could eventually break apart. The whistleblower’s lawyer says Boeing has ignored the engineer’s concerns and prevented him from talking to experts about fixing the defects.

The whistleblower, Sam Salehpour, sent documents to the Federal Aviation Administration, which is investigating the quality and safety of Boeing’s manufacturing. Also scheduled to testify before a Senate investigations subcommittee Wednesday is Ed Pierson, a former manager on the Boeing 737 program. Two other aviation technical experts are on the witness list as well.

The Democrat who chairs the subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and its senior Republican have asked Boeing for troves of documents going back six years.

The lawmakers are seeking all records about manufacturing of Boeing 787 and 777 planes, including any safety concerns or complaints raised by Boeing employees, contractors or airlines. Some of the questions seek information about Salehpour’s allegations about poorly fitted carbon-composite panels on the Dreamliner.

A Boeing spokesperson said the company is cooperating with the lawmakers’ inquiry and offered to provide documents and briefings.

The company says claims about the 787’s structural integrity are false. Two Boeing engineering executives said this week that in both design testing and inspections of planes — some of them 12 years old — there have been no findings of fatigue or cracking in the composite panels. They suggested that the material, formed from carbon fibers and resin, is nearly impervious to fatigue that is a constant worry with conventional aluminum fuselages.

The Boeing officials also dismissed another of Salehpour’s allegations: that he saw factory workers jumping on sections of fuselage on 777s to make them align.

Salehpour is the latest whistleblower to emerge with allegations about manufacturing problems at Boeing. The company has been pushed into crisis mode since a door-plug panel blew off a 737 Max jetliners during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. Investigators are focusing on four bolts that were removed and apparently not replaced during a repair job in Boeing’s factory.

The company faces a criminal investigation by the Justice Department and separate investigations by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board.

CEO David Calhoun, who will step down at the end of the year, has said many times that Boeing is taking steps to improve its manufacturing quality and safety culture. He called the blowout on the Alaska jet a “watershed moment” from which a better Boeing will emerge.

There is plenty of skepticism about comments like that.

“We need to look at what Boeing does, not just what it says it’s doing,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, said before Wednesday’s hearing.

The FAA is also likely to take some hits. Duckworth said that until recently, the agency “looked past far too many of Boeing’s repeated bad behaviors,” particularly when it certified the 737 Max nearly a decade ago. Two Max jets crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people, after faulty activations of a flight-control system that FAA did not fully understand.

The leaders of the Senate investigations subcommittee have also requested FAA documents about its oversight of Boeing.

AP – VOR News Image

Boeing In The Spotlight As Congress Calls A Whistleblower To Testify About Defects In Planes

“We need to look at what Boeing does, not just what it says it’s doing,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, before the hearing on Wednesday.

The FAA is also sure to face some criticism. Duckworth stated that until recently, the agency had “looked past far too many of Boeing’s repeated bad behaviors,” including when it certified the 737 Max more than a decade ago. Two Max jets crashed in 2018 and 2019, killing 346 people, due to incorrect activation of a flight-control system that the FAA did not fully comprehend.

The heads of the Senate investigations panel have also demanded information from the FAA about its monitoring of Boeing.

SOURCE – (AP)

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Forced Sale Google Chrome Could Fetch $20 Billion

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Antitrust officials in the US could force the sale of Google’s Chrome browser for up to $20 billion, demonstrating the tremendous worth of the world’s most popular web browser.

Bloomberg Intelligence attributes Chrome’s projected worth to its more than 3 billion monthly active users. The US Department of Justice is preparing to request a federal judge order the browser’s separation from Google’s parent company, Alphabet.

Chrome’s worth comes from its overwhelming 61% market share and its crucial role in Google’s advertising ecosystem. User data enables businesses to better target adverts, and the browser also acts as an important distribution mechanism for Google’s AI technologies.

Industry analysts think it may be difficult to find a suitable buyer. While tech behemoths like Amazon could finance the purchase, they would likely face regulatory scrutiny.

AI businesses, such as OpenAI, may emerge as more viable contenders. They could potentially leverage Chrome to broaden their reach and develop an advertising business.

“It’s not directly monetizable,” one analyst told Bloomberg. “It functions as a gateway to other things. It’s unclear how you would assess that in terms of pure revenue generation.”

Google opposes prospective sales, claiming that they will hamper innovation. The firm does not break out Chrome’s revenue individually in its financial filings, even though the browser’s user data plays an important part in the company’s principal revenue stream, advertising.

The DOJ’s suggestion follows Judge Amit Mehta’s August decision that Google had illegally monopolized the search industry. The judge will consider the recommended remedies at a two-week hearing in April 2024, with a final judgment due in August 2025.

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Bitcoin Has Set a New Record And Is Approaching $100,000.

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(VOR News) – Bitcoin broke beyond the $98,000 mark for the first time on Thursday as investors awaited Donald Trump’s second term as president. All of this happened during the day. As such, cryptocurrency has reached a significant turning point.

According to Coin Metrics, the top cryptocurrency was trading at $97,541.61 during the most recent trading session. Merchants provided this information. This suggests a price gain of more than three percent during the previous trading session.

When the period began, Bitcoin peaked at $98,367.00.

During the premarket trading session, MicroStrategy, a platform that facilitates cryptocurrency foreign exchange trading and serves as a bitcoin proxy, saw a 13% gain. Coinbase, on the other hand, had a 2% rise during that period. Furthermore, all of these increases occurred simultaneously.

The market value of Mara Holdings increased by 9%, which helped raise the valuation of mining companies overall. This was among the factors that led to the total rise.

Because of the widespread belief that President Trump will usher in a new era of prosperity for cryptocurrencies, one marked by more favorable laws and the possible creation of a national strategic bitcoin reserve, the price of Bitcoin has been rising steadily this month.

The most recent change brought about by the increase was the consequence of higher financing rates and more open interest in the futures market during Asian trading hours. The rise was the catalyst for this change. This action was prompted by the ensuing rush.

Throughout its lifespan, this legislation was the catalyst for this change for a variety of reasons. At the same time, spot market premiums decreased, according to CryptoQuant statistics. All of this happened at the same time.

Furthermore, a number of short liquidations have been sparked by the recent spikes in Bitcoin’s price, which has caused the price to rise overnight. As a result, the price has gone up much more. As a result, the total number of short liquidations has increased.

According to CoinGlass, these liquidations have effectively produced more than $88 million in capital during the last 24 hours.

Rob Ginsberg, an analyst at Wolfe Research, noted in a study released on Wednesday that “historically, following previous movements of this magnitude, Bitcoin has either entered a consolidation phase or disregarded the overbought condition as investors accumulate.” This phrase relates to the fact that this particular move has happened before.

Ginsberg stated this in reference to the evolution of Bitcoin over time.

Ginsberg’s answer makes reference to Bitcoin’s propensity to go through a period of consolidation. The comment also made reference to this.

He said, “Considering we are emerging from an extended consolidation phase and the price has reached a new high, it suggests that the pursuit is underway.”

The crucial psychological milestone of $100,000 is expected to be reached in the upcoming weeks, and this breakthrough could happen as early as Thursday. It seems likely that this level will be reached. There is a chance that this new development will take place.

This task will be carried out against the backdrop of this historical era. In addition, if Trump were to win a second term, federal budget deficits would increase, inflation would likely increase, and the dollar’s position in international affairs would change.

The administration that Trump would run during his presidency would be responsible for these consequences. All of these characteristics would positively impact the value of Bitcoin as a currency if they were taken into account in the order that they are presented.

The price of bitcoin had risen by more than 130% by the beginning of 2024.

SOUREC: CNBC

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Target Struggles in the Third Quarter: Offers Tempered Holiday Outlook and Price Cuts

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(VOR News) – Target experienced a modest rise in sales during the third quarter; nevertheless, profitability declined due to reduced customer spending attributed to inflation and adverse effects from the ongoing costs associated with the October dockworker strike.

Despite ongoing consumer expenditure in the United States, but with more prudence, the Minneapolis retailer did not meet Wall Street’s forecasts for the quarter and similarly disappointed industry analysts with its projections for the final quarter of the year.

Target’s reduction in prices for Christmas products, including a Thanksgiving promotion that lowered the cost of the holiday feast relative to last year’s total, raises concerns about disappointing quarterly results.

Target’s latest quarter sharply contrasts with competitor Walmart, which reported another quarter of exceptional revenues on Tuesday and provided positive forecasts for the forthcoming holiday season. Amazon disclosed last month that its quarterly profits had risen. Amazon surpassed projections with an 11% rise in quarterly revenue.

Target fell over 21% on Wednesday morning.

Chairman and CEO Brian Cornell stated, “We encountered distinct challenges and financial constraints that impacted our overall performance.”

FactSet reports that Target’s net income for the quarter ended November 2 was $854 million, or $1.85 per share, markedly below the anticipated $2.30 and a decline from $971 million, or $2.10 per share, in the same quarter of the previous year.

Despite an increase in sales to $25.67 billion from $25.4 billion the previous year, they fell short of Wall Street’s projections.

Target announced that for the fiscal fourth quarter, it anticipates earnings per share to fall between $1.85 to $2.45. This amount is below the $2.65 per share forecast by analysts surveyed by FactSet.

The retailer announced that in the third quarter, its comparable sales, derived from stores and digital platforms operational for a minimum of one year, increased by 0.3%.

This is inferior to the second quarter’s 2% growth. Several months of decreases, comprising a 3.7% reduction in the first quarter and a 4.4% reduction in the company’s final quarter of 2023, were counterbalanced by the rise in the April–June period.

Cosmetics sales rose by almost 6%, whilst food, beverages, and necessities such as shampoo experienced gains in the low single digits relative to the previous year.

The positive attributes were negligible. Target’s quarterly customer traffic rose by 2.4%. Target officials report that this represents an increase of 10 million sales transactions compared to the previous year. Digital comparable sales rose by 10.8% due to a 20% enhancement in same-day delivery facilitated by the Target Circle loyalty program and double-digit growth in its drive-up service.

Target encountered several challenges.

Target’s food and beverage sales constitute under 25% of overall sales, indicating a greater dependence on luxury items such as apparel and accessories.

Target management acknowledged that the company, similar to other retailers, had to redirect specific items due to the strike of 45,000 dockworkers, the first occurrence since 1977.

The accumulation of commodities in warehouses escalated operational expenses and diminished corporate earnings.

The commitment by President-elect Donald Trump to impose elevated import tariffs is resulting in difficulties for Target and other enterprises. Trump advocates for a 60% tariff on Chinese imports and a 20% levy on all other products. Cornell stated that, despite monitoring trends meticulously, the corporation has prioritized diversifying its supplier network.

“Currently, there exists considerable uncertainty regarding future developments, and we will exercise our flexibility to adapt as necessary,” he stated on the call.

Buyers remain apprehensive due to ongoing uncertainty, as prices, albeit decreasing, remain elevated compared to a few years prior.

“They are exhibiting significant patience, pursuing promotions and outstanding value on essential pantry items,” Cornell stated during a conference call with reporters. “Over the year, they have consistently focused on discretionary categories and are practicing prudent shopping behaviors.”

Target officials indicated a decline in television purchases, although they expressed interest in incorporating candles, frames, and flowers into their home décor.

Target has been reducing prices to boost sales. Last spring, it reduced costs for numerous essentials, including milk and diapers. Almost fifty percent of the numerous goods offered this Christmas are priced below $20. Target is offering a Thanksgiving dinner bundle for four people at $20, which is $5 less than its 2023 Thanksgiving meal package.

SOURCE: USN

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