The Boeing 737 MAX: Lessons for Engineering Ethics

BOEING'S DELIVERIES TOOK A HIT AFTER 737 MAX CRISIS

The crashes of two 737 MAX passenger planes in late 2018 and early 2019, followed by the grounding of the entire 737 MAX fleet, cast a global focus on Boeing's policies and culture. Explanations for the crashes include design flaws in the MAX's new flight control software system, which is intended to prevent stalls; internal pressure to keep up with Boeing's main competitor, Airbus; Boeing's lack of transparency about the new software; and the FAA's inadequate monitoring of Boeing, particularly during the MAX's certification and following the first crash.

WHY THIS EVENT?

In this blog, we look at numerous facets of the case, including the technical and other issues that contributed to the crashes, including Boeing's design choices and internal organizational difficulties inside the corporation and between Boeing and the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). While the case is still continuing, and the 737 MAX has not yet been recertified for flying, our analysis is based on several government reports and thorough press sources that are now accessible. We finish with a discussion of particular lessons for engineers and engineering educators on engineering ethics.

PERSONAL INSIGHT

Cost and scheduling considerations are not incompatible with an engineer's ethical responsibilities. Engineers are always faced with limits, such as time and resource limitations. Boeing engineers were legitimately concerned about losing contracts to competition Airbus. However, as an engineer, public safety and welfare must come first. The aforementioned software and other design flaws in the construction of the 737 MAX, which led in hundreds of deaths, appear to be unambiguous violations of engineering ethics. In addition to pointing out technical codes. Boeing engineers and management violated generally established ethical standards, including informed consent and the precautionary principle.

CONCLUSION

The Boeing 737 MAX case teaches engineers and engineering instructors significant lessons about their profession's ethical duties. Safety does not come cheap, but irresponsible technical design in the interest of cost savings and meeting delivery deadlines is a sign of ethical blight. Using practically any accepted ethical analysis or paradigm, Boeing's actions regarding the safety of the 737 MAX, notably judgments about MCAS, fall short.

REFERENCES

ACM/IEEE-CS Joint Task Force. (1997). Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice, https://ethics.acm.org/code-of-ethics/software-engineering-code/. [PubMed]

Adamson, G., & Herkert, J. (2020). Addressing intelligent systems and ethical design in the IEEE Code of Ethics. In Codes of ethics and ethical guidelines: Emerging technologies, changing fields. New York: Springer (in press).

Ahmed, H., Glanz, J., & Beech, H. (2019). Ethiopian airlines pilots followed Boeing’s safety procedures before crash, Report Shows. The New York Times, April 4, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/04/world/asia/ethiopia-crash-boeing.html.

AIAA. (2013). Code of Ethics, https://www.aiaa.org/about/Governance/Code-of-Ethics.

Arnold, K. (2019). FAA report predicted there could be 15 more 737 MAX crashes. The Dallas Morning News, December 11, https://www.dallasnews.com/business/airlines/2019/12/11/faa-chief-says-boeings-737-max-wont-be-approved-in-2019/