CLEVELAND — The slew of turbulence when it comes to The Boeing Company continues, as some would call, it a troubled history with the airplane manufacturer.
Boeing has been at the center of headlines throughout the country and continues to face a host of issues, including downed airplanes to whistleblower allegations of unsafe practices to a perceived bad culture within the company.
One of the most recent incidents in 2024 involves an Alaska Airlines plane door plug which flew off at 16,000 feet in the air. Cleveland Attorney Jamie Lebovitz of Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy represents several passengers who were on that plane.
"You’re still climbing, seatbelt sign is still on, and all of a sudden you hear this loud explosion," Lebovitz said in a recent interview. "And if you're near where the airplane tore apart, you see a part of the structure gone, and what's crossing your mind?"
Stan Singstad was a passenger on Alaska Air 1282. He was in seat 9F when the door flew off the plane.
"I looked over my shoulder and saw two holes in the plane, and at that point, I thought it was a bomb. It sounded like an explosion," Stingsad recalled. "I hear this loud explosion, and I think, 'Wow, what happened?' And then the lights go out, and then I feel this freezing cold air coming from the back towards the front, and my first thought was, 'Oh no, someone must have set off a bomb on the plane.'"
He tells 3News he can no longer work as a truck driver since the plane mishap, stating his PTSD from the mid-air scare has ruined his life.
"The very first thing, I was out on a truck, I had major anxiety issues and quit. I can’t even drive a truck anymore. Things I used to be able to do, I can't do anymore," he said. "I get so stressed out. This flight ruined me. I used to feel really comfortable on planes and tell people flying is the safest thing ever, but I don't think so anymore."
"Odds are it won't happen again, but tell that to the person who actually experienced it," Lebovitz noted. "It's not necessarily that easy for that person to just jump right back on an airplane. If you were further forward in the cabin and you didn't see it, but you heard it, the effects on you may not be the same as someone who actually was in the zone of danger or close proximity to where the airplane ripped apart, and everybody responds differently."
One month after the incident, the NTSB released a preliminary report stating that four bolts meant to secure the door were missing. Now, there’s an investigate hearing set for Aug. 6.
"When are we going to be able to maximize recovery and also hold Boeing accountable for what occurred?" Lebovitz asked. "Because it's more than just monetary damages; there's accountability, and Boeing will react differently when there are numbers, when there are people, when there are passengers that are not just sweeping the under of the rug, but actually, they want answers."
Meantime, in the last two months, two Boeing whistleblowers who claim the company lacked attention to safety have died — one by suicide, the other (a former employee) of a sudden infection. Both said Boeing was putting production ahead of quality control of the airplane.
3News reached out to Boeing directly and were told the company is not offering interviews with the media. However, in a recent address to shareholders, CEO Dave Calhoun said, "Our team is staying focused on the important work we're doing, and it's that focus across government and across industry that has ensured air travel is by far the safest form of transportation."
In a statement, Calhoun goes onto say, "We are taking actions across virtually every aspect of Boeing at every layer and every level, we've made important leadership changes and we’ve updated our inventive structure to better align with our focus on safety over quality. We are doubling down on our commitment to reduce traveled work, we have already slowed things down considerably."
But is it enough? WKYC went to Captain Dennis Tajer, an American Airlines pilot for 32 years and the spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, the union that represents the 16,000 pilots of American.
"The people who are at the top of Boeing over decades changed a great company into one that no one trusts. The airlines don't trust Boeing, the FAA doesn't," Tajer said, while admitting that "the FAA has problem as well." "We are here to fly people safely. The door blew off the Alaska flight and it blew the doors off Boeing again and revealed to us that they really hadn't changed and aside from the engineering excellence that they bragged they would get back on. They had this new level of production assembly, putting the airplane together — failures, literally leaving bolts off a door, and we aren't back to square one; we are back to square -10."
Tajer says what he does has become a challenge.
"I don't fly on air airplane unless it’s safe to do so, but my alert status when I get on a (Boeing 7)37 — and particularly a MAX — is at a level that I haven't been at since I was in the military in combat," he stated. "I flew Boeing aircraft in the military during combat, and it saved my life as I pushed it to the edge and it defended me from the enemy outside of the airplane. Now, I feel like the enemy is from within."
3News went to NBC aviation specialist Captain John Cox for his thoughts. Cox is the CEO of Safety Operating Systems LLC, and before that, he was executive air safety chairman for the Airline Pilots Association.
"Flying is safe — probably a much more dangerous thing you can do is drive to your destination," Cox remarked. "I was on a Boeing plane four days ago. The answer (to 'Is it safe?') is yes, unequivocally yes."
According to a recent report from the International Air Transport Association, 2023 was the safest year for flying ever, with more than 35 million commercial jets in the air without a single fatality or accident.
"It's unparalleled, it's unmatched as far as the safest form of transportation. There is nothing else near it," Cox said. "That's not to say it's safe enough, for one of the ways that we have gotten as safe as we are is that we don't accept today as good enough. But the airlines in service today, I don't have any questions about the safety at all."
"Do I want to fly Boeing airplanes? Heck yes! I know what they were built like and I know what they can be built like, and I want to bring Boeing back to a point of credibility," Tajer added. "Here's the good news for passengers: The ilots who are flying the airplanes are an independent advocate for your safety. Of course, we're on the airplane with you — I don't even think about that. I think about the people that I'm carrying. We are not going to allow anything that jeopardizes your safety to happen on that airplane. We are on the airplane, so we are going to be the ones to defend you through the busy summer season."