FAA head says Boeing’s changes to safety culture are long-term effort

Boeing (NYSE:BA) has to make “significant changes” to improve the quality and safety of its airplanes, the head of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said in prepared remarks on Tuesday.

Speaking at the latest congressional hearing on the agency’s oversight of Boeing (BA), FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker said the safety regulator and the company have made progress since the January 5 accident in which a door plug fell off a 737 Max flown by Alaska Airlines.

Whitaker also said there’s more work to do, and that the agency will provide increased oversight for the foreseeable future.

“There must be a shift in the company’s safety culture to holistically address its systemic quality assurance and production issues,” he said. “Our goal is to make sure Boeing implements the necessary changes and has the right tools in place to sustain those changes in the long term.”

Boeing (BA) this month has seen a significant part of its commercial plane business grind to a halt as 33,000 machinists went on strike after rejecting a proposed four-year contract.