WASHINGTON, DC— Today, Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation Rick Larsen (D-WA) issued the following statements after Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee released its report on the Lion Air flight 610 crash. The report comes ahead of the Committee’s scheduled hearing on Wednesday, October 30, titled “The Boeing 737 MAX: Examining the Design, Development, and Marketing of the Aircraft.”
“This is a tough time for the friends and families of those killed in Lion Air flight 610 almost exactly one year ago today. The Indonesian authorities’ report sadly confirms many of the findings of my Committee’s investigation of the issues surrounding the 737 MAX—and it sheds new light on the horrifying final moments of Lion Air flight 610. It’s clear that reforms will be needed to ensure that future safety-critical systems don’t create single points of failure that bring down new commercial aircraft designs. I will continue to use every tool at my disposal to get to the bottom of the failures in the system that led to not one, but two tragic crashes. And I will be introducing legislation at the appropriate time to ensure that unairworthy commercial airliners no longer slip through our regulatory system,” said Chair DeFazio.
“When you add the Lion Air Flight 610 report to the reports and recommendations from NTSB, JATR and the Boeing Aerospace Safety Committee, one thing is abundantly clear: the method by which the FAA certifies aircraft is itself in need of repair,” said Chair Larsen. “The families and loved ones of the victims of this tragedy rightfully expect Congress to act. The goal of the Committee’s investigation has been clear from the start: find the facts that led to these devastating crashes, reform the system that allowed them to happen and improve aviation safety for the traveling public. At next week’s full Committee hearing, I expect Boeing will provide clear and direct answers in response to the Indonesian investigation report findings and related recommendations. As the Committee’s investigation continues, we will maintain safety as the guiding principle.”
More information on the Committee’s Boeing 737 Max Investigation can be found here.
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