sailingfun

Boeing will not have much to say. They don’t want to offend the Chinese and likely won’t see the CVR data.

JohnBurke

Boeing doesn't own the investigation. Every country and every aviation authority is responsible for its own investigation; the manufacturer, et al, are invited parties. Boeing will unquestionably be involved in the investigation and privy to flight data and cockpit voice data, transcripts, etc.

If indeed the wildly premature insinuations of the conspiracy world bear weight and do hold water, that would be in Boeing's best interest too, clearing the manufacturer of any part in the matter. If that's the line the Chinese intend to push, and there's no evidence thus far that they do beyond questionable conspiracy sources, rumor and speculation, there is absolutely no reason why Boeing would not see it.

I'm quite aware of the Chinese aviation culture. I've seen it as far as having caught Chinese airline students cheating, only to be told by the airline chief pilot that it is an instructor fault for catching the student, and having been ordered not to catch them cheating again (but to allow it, as it shows great initiative and prowess on the part of the student, and is to be commended). The Chinese aviation machine is no bastion of forward thought, or integrity, and anyone familiar with it knows this quite well. That said, this is an investigation involving multiple parties on a global scale, which has garnered international attention, and will certainly be scrutinized more closely than the assumption that whatever it takes to placate the Chinese, goes.

Let's bear in mind that what emerges from various nations is not always the gold standard of integrity; Pakistan with it's many unlicensed pilots. The Ethiopian 737 Max crash with an uncertificated right seat first officer with no experience in type, despite the official report (he had a "crew qualification" and only sim time, but no pilot license, despite the Ethiopian blessing of the interim report (to date). The rapid stipulation by the Malaysian government of a pilot suicide based on a "simulator" in the pilot's home, formed with zero evidence, and pronounced as having cracked the case, in MH370...only three days into the event. Pilots globally are frequently far form what we might find an acceptable standard in the US, and that very much includes many carriers in China. The Chinese government is often not forthcoming, and every statement by the government is always politicized, washed for effect, and carved into a jigsaw puzzle piece meant to dovetail to the party line. No shock. Boeing, however, while seller to the airlines under the party, is unlikely to simply bow to conspiracy in the hopes of sales. The Chinese will continue to buy Boeing, and Boeing will contribute to the investigation insofar as allowed, and as desired. The investigation does not belong to Boeing. That said, Boeing also has a core interest in knowing, so far as they are able, the cause of this event. The Chinese are not their only customer.

GeeWizDriver

Boeing is already analyzing the data. But they are enjoined from sharing the results with anybody but the Chinese aviation authorities.

I spent the last week hanging out with a recently retired Boeing e-suite type. I asked him point blank: Intentional act or structural failure? He said that from the conversations he's had, everything so far points to intentional act.

Aviato

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2022-05-17/flight-data-from-china-eastern-jet-points-to-intentional-nosedive-wsj
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Edited to add: Here's the WSJ article but it's paywalled.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-e...805097?mod=mhp

rickair7777

WSJ links never seem to work even though I have a subs and am signed in


So pilot mass murder. Boeing is happy.

Aviato

Thanks, Rick. Same here. That's why I edited the link a couple times. Thought it was maybe just my configuration. Good to know!

For those who don't (or do) have access, the WSJ article does a deeper dive because others are just quoting WSJ reporting.

Yeah, a lot of people at Boeing will sleep easier tonight now that the theory has been publicly confirmed.

PurpleToolBox

This is possibly the worst thing that could happen to our profession.

JohnBurke

Didn't do the passengers a hell of a lot of good, either.

dera

Not necessarily. It enforces the requirement for 2 pilots. And hopefully China revises their policy on their flight deck access.

rickair7777

Yeah some airlines/countries still allow one pilot to go back and leave the other guy alone. Don't know if that was the case in this deal. Does China allow one pilot to be alone up front?