by David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. National Aviation Authority (FAA) will continue its enhanced oversight of Boeing for an extended period, the agency’s outgoing head said on Friday, nearly a year after a plane incident Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 whose door panel came off in mid-flight.

Following this incident, the FAA temporarily grounded 170 Boeing aircraft and then limited the production rate to 38 737 MAX aircraft per month. The incident and the ensuing crisis for Boeing led to the departure of its CEO at the time, Dave Calhoun.

“We have conducted an unprecedented number of unannounced audits; and we conduct monthly check-ins with Boeing executives to monitor progress. Our enhanced oversight is here to stay,” Mike Whitaker said in a statement.

In February, the FAA ordered Boeing to develop a plan to resolve the quality issues. Mike Whitaker acknowledged that previous oversight was too passive.

“This is not a one-year project. What is needed is a fundamental cultural change at Boeing, focused on safety and quality before profits,” added Mike Whitaker. “This will require sustained effort and commitment from Boeing, as well as continued oversight from us.”

Last month, Mike Whitaker announced that he planned to leave office on January 20, the date of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration. Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Transportation, Sean Duffy told Reuters he wanted to make sure “we have safe planes coming out of Boeing.”

The American aircraft manufacturer announced Friday that it has strengthened its safety and quality efforts, with new random audits and a significant reduction in defects in the assembly of the 737 fuselage at Spirit AeroSystems, thanks to increased inspections and a process of quality approval by the customer.

(Written by David Shepardson, Elena Smirnova, edited by Blandine Hénault)

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