The Federal Aviation Administration is expanding its probe into Boeing that began after a mid-air blowout of a plug on a 737 Max 9 aircraft earlier this month; the investigation involves Wichita-based Spirit AeroSystems.
In a statement, the federal agency said, “After taking decisive action to ground 171 Boeing 737-9 MAX airplanes, the FAA is now investigating Boeing’s manufacturing practices and production lines, including those involving subcontractor Spirit AeroSystems, bolstering its oversight of Boeing, and examining potential system change."
Last week, the FAA started an investigation into whether Boeing failed to ensure its planes complied with the agency’s safety regulations.
The FAA also announced it's increasing the oversight of Boeing’s production, including auditing its production.
An “explosive decompression” occurred nearly two weeks ago on an Alaska Airlines flight that took off from Portland, Oregon, when a panel plugging an unused emergency exit door blew off mid-flight.