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US Transportation Secretary\u00a0Pete Buttigieg\u00a0said the\u00a0Federal Aviation Administration\u00a0will rigorously assess\u00a0The Boeing Co.<\/a>\u00a0after the blowout of a fuselage section on an Alaska Airlines flight in January.<\/p>\n To maintain airline safety, \u201cthat means an enormous amount of rigor in dealing with Boeing<\/a>, in dealing with any regulatory issue,\u201d Buttigieg said on\u00a0Fox<\/a> News Sunday. \u201c<\/em>And that\u2019s exactly what the FAA is doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Boeing has faced scrutiny from passengers and regulators after a series of high-profile flight incidents this year, most notably the blowout of a fuselage section on a brand-new 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, which has prompted a criminal investigation by the Justice Department.<\/p>\n Four bolts that should have prevented the panel covering an unused door from flying off were apparently missing, the National Transportation Safety Board found in a\u00a0preliminary report<\/a>. All 171 passengers and six crew\u00a0evacuated the plane<\/a>\u00a0without serious injury.<\/p>\n \u201cIn an event like this, it\u2019s normal for the DOJ to be conducting an investigation,\u201d Alaska Airlines said Saturday in a statement. \u201cWe are fully cooperating and do not believe we are a target of the investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n A Boeing Co. spokesperson declined to comment and the Justice Department didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Additionally, Boeing said in a letter to Congress that it can\u2019t locate records of the work performed on the door panel that failed, an unusual acknowledgment in an industry that places a significant emphasis on documentation.<\/p>\n Buttigieg\u2019s comments follow a\u00a0mishap-filled week<\/a>\u00a0for\u00a0United Airlines<\/a>\u00a0flights. One of its aircraft ran off a taxiway at Houston on Friday, another lost a tire after takeoff from San Francisco and a flame-spewing engine forced another into an emergency landing.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery time I step off of a jet bridge and onto a plane, which is every few days, I know that I am participating in the safest way to travel in the world. And we never take that for granted,\u201d Buttigieg said.<\/p>\n The FAA ordered a\u00a0temporary grounding of 171 planes<\/a>\u00a0for inspection following the Alaska Airlines blowout in January as carriers across the globe briefly took their Max 9\u2019s out of service. In 2019, Boeing grounded its entire fleet of Max aircraft after two deadly crashes.<\/p>\n The accidents led to a $2.5 billion\u00a0settlement<\/a>\u00a0with the Justice Department to resolve a criminal charge related to a conspiracy to defraud the FAA. Under that agreement, Boeing\u00a0took on a compliance program<\/a>\u00a0designed to prevent it from deceiving regulators. It agreed to cooperate with the government for three years, after which the charge would be dismissed.<\/p>\n The Alaska Air incident took place two days before the agreement\u2019s expiration.<\/p>\n Boeing shares have tumbled about 24% since the end of December, the most in almost two years.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nSubscribe to the CFO Daily newsletter to keep up with the trends, issues, and executives shaping corporate finance. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n