SEATTLE — Boeing announced its new CEO, Kelly Ortberg on Wednesday, July 31. The Seattle Times reports that Ortberg has decided to be based in Seattle.
U.S. Senator Patty Murray who acts as the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC), commented on Wednesday that she believes the company headquarters should be moved to Washington state as well.
Senator Murray’s office reports that she watches Boeing’s activity very closely and is dedicated to ensuring that the company is held to high safety standards.
They say in May of 2024, staff from the SAC visited Boeing’s facility in Renton and met with Boeing officials and workers in hopes of being informed and involved with new safety measures.
In July, Senator Murray met with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Michael Whitaker to discuss the FAA’s oversight of Boeing following an incident in which a door came off a Boeing plane mid-flight on January 5.
After the incident, Boeing submitted an action plan to the FAA announcing new reforms and Murray aims to ensure that those reforms are implemented.
In December of 2020, U.S. Congress enacted the Aircraft Certification, Safety and Accountability Act (ACSAA) which works to improve the FAA’s aircraft certification process.
ACSAA was passed based on numerous investigations and audits after the Boeing 737 MAX crashes and since its passing, has enabled the FAA’s Office of Aviation Safety to employ more staff.
Additionally, within the 2024 fiscal year, the transportation spending bill, negotiated by Murray, provides an increase of $1.058 billion for the FAA and funding for 125 new positions in the Office of Aviation Safety that aim to increase oversight of Boeing and implement ACSAA effectively.
Murray also worked to secure new oversight language in the fiscal year 2025 transportation spending bill to ensure that the FAA maintains its increased oversight of Boeing and keeps the SAC in the loop on updates.
“Boeing has a lot of work to do to right the ship and get this company back on track—it’s good that the new CEO will be based in Seattle, but they should move headquarters back to Washington state as well. Boeing should return to its roots, listen to its workers, particularly those who actually build their planes, and put safety and quality first. I hope to meet with Mr. Ortberg very soon."
Senator Maria Cantwell also called for Boeing to move its location. Cantwell was the one who spearheaded the ACSAA.
"The company needs to move back to Seattle," Cantwell said. "The notion that somebody thinks they can run the company from anywhere other than Seattle is a big mistake. "It's a good first step that the CEO will be based in Seattle, and now the rest of the headquarters needs to move back home to rejoin our world-class aviation workforce. When it comes to quality and safety, being close to the workforce on the ground matters."
