Boeing whistleblower told Congress his boss threatened him after speaking up in a meeting
Boeing claims its 787 Dreamliner is safe to operate ahead of two US Senate hearings on Wednesday
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A Boeing whistleblower testified before Congress on Wednesday after claiming one of their models, the 787 Dreamliner, is unsafe to operate.
Sam Salehpour, a quality engineer for the company, told a US Senate subcommittee that his boss threatened him after he voiced concerns.
“My boss said, ‘I would have killed someone who said what you said in the meeting,’” Mr Salehpour testified. “This is not safety culture when you get threatened by bringing issues of safety concerns.”
The US Senate hosted two hearings on Wedneday related to Boeing. The first hearing, held by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee featured testimony from aviation safety experts. Mr Salehpour spoke at the second hearing, held by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee for Investigations.
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun is not expected to appear.
These hearings follow a string of safety incidents with Boeing planes in recent months.
Most notably, a door plug fell off an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max aircraft at an altitude of 16,000 feet in January. While no one was hurt, passengers lost several belongings and were left terrified. A preliminary investigation revealed the door was missing four bolts.
Whistleblowers testifying at ‘great personal risk’: senator
“These whistleblowers have come forward at great personal risk,” Senator Richard Blumenthal said at the whistleblower hearing. “In fact, a number of them and others have suffered harassment, isolation, transfers, and even threats of physical violence.”
Mr Blumenthal specifically thanked Sam Salehpour, Boeing quality engineer, for speaking about his safety concerns.
“As a result, he was isolated, transferred, even threatened for refusing to stay silent,” the senator said of Mr Salehpour.
Watch live: Boeing whistleblower testifies about plane defects at Senate committee
Watch live: Boeing whistleblower testifies about plane defects at Senate committee
Watch live as Boeing whistleblowers appear before Richard Blumenthal's Senate subcommittee on safety on Wednesday, 17 April.
Who are the whistleblowers and experts testifying?
Four first-hand expert witnesses will testify on the state of Boeing:
Sam Salehpour, quality engineer at Boeing; Ed Pierson, former Boeing manager; Joe Jacobsen, former Federal Aviation Administration engineer; Shawn Pruchnicki, an aviation accident investigator and former commercial pilot.
Whistleblower says Boeing is taking ‘manufacturing shortcuts’ that make airplanes unsafe
“I’m not here today because I want to be here,” whistleblower Sam Salehpour said. “I’m here today because I felt that I must come forward, because I do not want to see another 787 or 777 crash.”
“I have analyzed Boeing’s own data to conclude that the company is taken manufacturing shortcuts on the 787 program that may significantly reduce the airplane safety and the lifecycle,” Mr Salehpour told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee for Investigations.
Boeing whistleblower says manufacturing mistakes not ‘properly addressed’ vast majority of time
“I found gaps exceeding the specification that were not properly addressed 98.7 per cent of the time,” Sam Salehpour, quality engineer at Boeing, said of measurements and joints on the 787s.
“Inspection of the data shows that the debris ended up in the gaps 80 per cent of the time,” he continued. “Again, you know you have debris in the gaps 80% of the time.”
Aviation safety witness says he would still fly in a Boeing plane
“Within the aeroplane world you have to look at what’s happening and go how comfortable am I flying in this aeroplane versus that aeroplane? For me personally, I keep track of what’s happening on the [737 Max] for obvious reasons, and I’m worried about what’s happening on the [737 Max],” aviation safety expert Javier de Luis testified.
“Now if I had to fly somewhere, because there was, there was no other option,” Dr de Luis continued. “I would absolutely fly it versus driving for example because I can make that trade.”
Aviation accident investigator says Boeing incidents are a first in decades-long career
Shawn Pruchnicki said Boeing’s series of alarming events are a first in his decades of work in aviation and aerospace safety.
“There does not appear to be any evidence of changes to any of the components on the horizon as a string of alarming events continued to unfold,” Dr Pruchnicki testified. “In safety engineering work, we call these precursors to accidents. I have never in my decades of Aerospace Safety work seen so many continuing to arrive one after another.”
Dr Pruchnicki is an aviation accident investigator and former commercial pilot. He is also a professional practice assistant professor of integrated systems engineering at The Ohio State University.
Audience member briefly interrupts hearing
An unidentified man viewing the whistleblower hearing briefly interrupted the proceedings, holding documents in the air as he spoke.
It is unclear what the man said or what he shouted at the presiding senators. However, Chairman Richard Blumenthal said the committee would meet with him privately and review his documents.
“I want to spare you being removed and just tell you that we will be happy to take those documents and meet with you privately,” Mr Blumenthal said.
Whistleblower says he received physical threats for speaking up
Sam Salehpour, whistleblower and quality engineer at Boeing, said his boss threatened him after he voiced concerns at a company meeting.
“My boss said, ‘I would have killed someone who said what you said in the meeting,’” Mr Salehpour testified before a Senate committee. “This is not safety culture, when you get threatened by bringing issues of safety concerns.”
Boeing has culture of retaliation: whistleblower
“Do you think that there was a culture of retaliation against whistleblowers?” Senator Roger Marshall asked Sam Salehpour, whistleblower and Boeing quality engineer.
“Absolutely,” Mr Salehpour responded. The Boeing engineer explained the only reason he still has a job is because his attorneys helped him.
Mr Salehpour also described a 40-minute phone call berating him and threatening him for speaking up.
“They call you on your personal phone to let you know that they know where you live,” he said of Boeing. “They know where you are. And they can hurt you. And you know, after the threats...it really scares me, believe me, but I am at peace.
“You know, if something happens to me, I am at peace because I feel like by coming forward, I will be saving a lot of lives and my piece whatever happens it happens,” Mr Salehpour continued.
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