> One possibility is incompetence. But Boeing engineers are smart people, so I'm not convinced by this.
That's still a possibility. Stupid decisions can emerge out of smart people.
Boeing is huge, and what they develop is incredibly complex. There are a lot of people with differing level of competence, ethics, and goals.
For example (I am not saying that happened), the engineers designing MCAS didn't expect incorrect AoA data, thinking the checks were done elsewhere. At the same time, the "sensors" team thought that raw, unchecked data was expected. The integration guy didn't read the specs correctly (sometimes, it comes down to a single word), didn't catch that, and checked the OK box. His manager, focused on a more pressing issue took that as granted and it went to production.
It is possible that the engineers did an excellent work, but didn't question the specs they had. The integration guy is normally super reliable but he just had a bad day. And his manager handled the other problem beautifully and overlooked the MCAS/AoA because, normally, the integration guy is reliable. A series of small mistakes that ended up in a catastrophe.
There are a lot of safeguards but the complexity is so high that sometimes, something goes through. Especially if the company is under pressure.
That's still a possibility. Stupid decisions can emerge out of smart people.
Boeing is huge, and what they develop is incredibly complex. There are a lot of people with differing level of competence, ethics, and goals.
For example (I am not saying that happened), the engineers designing MCAS didn't expect incorrect AoA data, thinking the checks were done elsewhere. At the same time, the "sensors" team thought that raw, unchecked data was expected. The integration guy didn't read the specs correctly (sometimes, it comes down to a single word), didn't catch that, and checked the OK box. His manager, focused on a more pressing issue took that as granted and it went to production.
It is possible that the engineers did an excellent work, but didn't question the specs they had. The integration guy is normally super reliable but he just had a bad day. And his manager handled the other problem beautifully and overlooked the MCAS/AoA because, normally, the integration guy is reliable. A series of small mistakes that ended up in a catastrophe.
There are a lot of safeguards but the complexity is so high that sometimes, something goes through. Especially if the company is under pressure.