FAA orders inspections of Boeing 787 Dreamliners after plunging incident

The Federal Aviation Administration is ordering inspections of Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets after "a report of uncommanded movement of the Captain’s seat in the forward direction" caused a rapid descent.

The inspection order came in an airworthiness directive by the FAA. Airworthiness directives are legally enforceable regulations issued by the FAA to correct an unsafe condition in a product, such as an aircraft.

The FAA said that the uncommanded movement of the pilot's seat caused a control column input to disconnect the auto-pilot during a March 2024 flight. Amid the rapid descent, the first officer was able to take control of the plane, but not before multiple injuries on board.

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The incident stemmed from a LATAM Flight 800 from Sydney to Auckland. 9 News in Australia reported that 30-40 people went flying into the air inside the plane as it took a nosedive.

Since then, the FAA said it had received four additional reports of the pilot seat moving automatically. The FAA said three of the incidents were due to loose forward/aft rocker switch caps, and two other incidents remain under investigation.

The probe comes after Boeing engineer Sam Salehpour alleged that the Boeing 787 jets could have damaged parts, including improperly closed gaps in the bodies, which airlines may not know how to check for.

Salehpour first voiced his concerns to The New York Times.

“He has repeatedly reported to Boeing management serious concerns about Boeing's current production and quality control processes, which he believes are creating potentially catastrophic safety risks,” Salehpour’s attorney Debra S. Katz previously said in a letter to Department of Transportation administrator Michael Whitaker.

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"In his work on the 787, he observed shortcuts taken by Boeing in the shimming process during assembly, resulting in drilling debris left in interfaces and deformation of composite material," Katz added.

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun has acknowledged challenges with handling employee concerns and has added that it is improving its culture to take situations seriously.