Under capitalism, however, with profit as the primary goal, there will be a never-ending battle of short-term expense versus long-term safety, where the latter finishes a long way behind.
This is the business school graduate's mission: Profit. Either grow revenue or cut cost.
Until the Lion Air crash, no 737 MAX pilot had ever heard of this completely new MCAS system, which was not documented anywhere, never mind trained for in the simulator. In fact, this was one of the main selling points that helped Boeing secure the 5,000 orders for the 737 MAX: no expensive separate type rating – on average a 5-6 week training involving full-motion simulators, which are very expensive to run – needed for your existing 737 pilots, who can keep making your company money.
The roots of this crisis can be found in
a major change the agency instituted in its regulatory responsibility in 2005. Rather than naming and supervising its own ‘designated airworthiness representatives,’ the agency decided to allow Boeing and other manufacturers who qualified under the revised procedures to select their own employees to certify the safety of their aircraft. In justifying this change, the agency said at the time that it would
save the aviation industry about $25 billion from 2006 to 2015. Therefore, the manufacturer is providing safety oversight of itself. This is a worrying move toward industry
self-certification.
A relationship that is confused. Self regulation and budgetary pressure.
Regulatory capture.
A similar process of “soft corruption” and conflict of interest can be seen in the financial industry in various countries across the world, made worse by deregulation. The Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 started a process of removing government controls over the airlines and manufacturers in the USA. This was done to encourage competition and lower the ticket prices, but the end result has been the monopolisation of air travel to the point where four major carriers control 80 percent of US air traffic. Tickets did become cheaper but travelling by plane has generally become a miserable experience worldwide and the workforce – from pilots and cabin crew to dispatchers, baggage handlers and office workers – is more exploited, underpaid and demoralised than ever.
In the centuries old battle of profit above all else, safety can only ever come a distant second.
The reputational damage to the FAA and indeed Boeing is substantial.
Whatever the correlated factors between the two accidents, MCAS is the symptom. The problem has its genesis in three elements:
- The focus on infinite profit growth with infinite cost reduction (a product of business school) MBA teaching
- Regulatory Capture
- Soft corruption
There is no need for a case study. This is one of the oldest themes and the arrogance of humanity condemns it to repeat over and over.