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In June of 2018, warning bells went off for Ed Pierson, a Senior Manager at Boeing's 737 Factory. The production environment he helped oversee was becoming increasingly chaotic, leading to worrisome lapses in quality and safety. Months later, when two Boeing 737 MAX aircraft crashed in separate incidents, killing over 300 people, Pierson took action as a whistleblower, determined to shed light on the potential role played by production defects. Today, as a leading safety advocate in aviation, Pierson continues to push Boeing and Federal authorities to fully investigate and fix the 737 MAX. Join him as he discusses the latest safety-related news; chats with a fascinating array of whistleblowers, safety experts, policymakers, and business leaders from around the globe; and explores how all of us can keep our communities safer by heeding our own warning bells.
34 Episodes
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On June 12, 2025, Air India Flight 171—a Boeing 787-8—went down just moments after takeoff. Within weeks, a preliminary report pointed the finger at the pilots, citing fuel cutoff switches that allegedly "transitioned" from run to cutoff. Case closed—or so it seemed. But what if that story doesn’t hold up? Electrical engineer Jeremy John Thompson saw something else. In this episode of Warning Bells, Ed and Joe talk with Jeremy about his painstaking technical analysis—an investigation built fr...
Join Ed and Joe on Warning Bells as they welcome Charles Hoefer for a chilling deep dive into a case that ties a brand-new RV factory to the illicit production of critical flight components, reveals troubling government inaction, and raises urgent questions about hidden safety risks to passengers and flight crews.
The Boeing 737 MAX exposed a catastrophic failure in the U.S. aircraft certification system — two crashes, 347 lives lost, and a crisis of confidence that shook aviation to its core. The FAA promised reform. Instead, insiders say problems have not been admitted or corrected. Now, as Boeing pushes to accelerate the certification of its next-generation jets — the 737 MAX 7, MAX 10, and 777X — the FAA is quietly making that process even easier (i.e. "streamlined"). What does that mean for...
In this episode of Warning Bells, Foundation for Aviation Safety’s Ed Pierson and Randy Klatt examine how leadership—or the lack of it—shapes aviation accident investigations. Drawing lessons from recent tragedies, including the Air India Flight 171 disaster, they discuss the crucial role of integrity, humility, and accountability in uncovering the truth. The conversation highlights the inherent conflicts of interest when manufacturers and regulators investigate their own products, the danger...
Join host Ed, Joe, and Randy as they sit down with Juan Browne—airline captain, Air Force veteran, and the voice behind the Blancolirio aviation channel—for an unfiltered conversation about transparency in aviation investigations, healthy speculation, and why the aviation community deserves timely access to factual data.
In this episode of Warning Bells, Ed Pierson welcomes Petter Hörnfeldt—better known as the Mentour Pilot—to discuss aviation safety, pilot trust, and the critical role of transparency in an evolving industry. Alongside Joe Jacobsen and Randy Klatt of The Foundation for Aviation Safety, they unpack the realities behind the Boeing 737 MAX, examine the risks of safety complacency, and discuss how pilots rely on a wide array of support systems and other aviation professionals.
Every day, millions of passengers board planes, trusting that someone, somewhere, is keeping them safe. But behind the polished image of commercial aviation lies a hidden, bureaucratic process—managed quietly by the FAA and other aviation regulators—that is supposed to identify and communicate dangerous aircraft defects. When a problem is discovered, however, the FAA doesn’t sound an alarm alerting passengers to unsafe conditions—it sends out dense, technical service bulletins that can take s...
The FAA continues to fail in their oversight of Boeing’s manufacturing operations. Boeing whistleblowers have been complaining for years about the illegal removal of thousands of quality control inspections on individual airplanes. By the time the FAA acted, it was too little, too late. 346 people died in two MAX crashes and hundreds of airplanes have already been delivered to unsuspecting airline customers around the world. So how did this happen? Join Ed, Joe, and safety expert Randy Klat...
The National Transportation Safety Board’s mission is making transportation safer. One of the ways the NTSB carries out this mission is by conducting objective, thorough investigations. The mission of the Department of Justice is to uphold the rule of law, to keep our country safe, and to protect civil rights. Join Ed and Joe as they discuss how officials at these agencies have completely failed to carry out their investigative responsibilities in the aftermath of the two Boeing 737 MAX airpl...
What happens if a new or old airplane is found to have a defect, especially a dangerous defect that risks the safety of the airplane? As a passenger, when you purchase an airline ticket you understandably expect the airplane to be free of any dangerous defects. Join Ed and his guest Mike Dostert as they expose and unravel the little known, slow moving, and dysfunctional process.
Ok we admit it, no one will believe this story—but it is true. Why and how did Boeing remove thousands of quality control inspections on individual airplanes, before and after the two MAX crashes, without the FAA’s approval or knowledge and without the knowledge of Boeing’s airline customers? Join Ed and aerospace safety engineer Joe Jacobsen as they welcome Boeing IAM Union Business Representative Lloyd Catlin to the podcast. Listen to Ed & Joe unravel Mr. Catlin’s incredible story as he...
Ok we admit it, no one will believe this story—but it is true. Why and how did Boeing remove thousands of quality control inspections on individual airplanes, before and after the two MAX crashes, without the FAA’s approval or knowledge and without the knowledge of Boeing’s airline customers? Join Ed and aerospace safety engineer Joe Jacobsen as they welcome Boeing IAM Union Business Representative Lloyd Catlin to the podcast. Listen to Ed & Joe unravel Mr. Catlin’s incredible story as he...
The supply chain problems at Boeing are not limited to getting parts from thousands of suppliers delivered on-time. The problem is also the quality of some of the parts, and because Boeing routinely violates its own manufacturing and quality processes. How and why is this happening? Join Ed and former Boeing parts expert Merle Meyers as they discuss the reckless behavior that is still occurring inside Boeing’s factories. These dangerous practices continue to place Boeing airplanes at risk. U....
Join Ed as he welcomes Jessica Edwards Taggart, a former Boeing manufacturing and quality control employee, to the Warning Bells podcast. Jessica held several positions in manufacturing and quality over the course of her 20-year career. She provides firsthand insight into the job pressures and describes what it was like working inside a Boeing factory.
Join Ed as he discusses the state of commercial aviation with legendary pilot Captain Sully Sullenberger and aerospace safety engineer Joe Jacobsen. The trio also delve into a wide range of topics from recent incidents involving uncommanded rolls of Boeing 737 MAX airplanes to the criticisms of the Indonesian and Ethiopian pilots of the two Boeing 737 MAX airplanes that crashed in 2018 & 2019.
Why are people fearful of bringing up bad news? Is it safe and worth it to speak up? Join Ed for a thoughtful discussion on workplace culture with author Stephen “Shed” Shedletzky. Shed is the author of SPEAK-UP CULTURE – When Leaders Truly Listen People Step Up.
After the harrowing incident occurring on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, and the many developments that have followed since, Ed Pierson talks first person.
Join Ed and his guests, Michael Stumo and Joe Jacobsen, as they discuss the status of the FAA Reauthorization Act and why Congress must incorporate nine recommendations from families of crash victims.
Ed is joined by Doug Pasternak, former Director of Investigations and Oversight for the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Mr. Pasternak led the committee's 18 month long investigation into the Boeing 737 MAX airplanes after two crashes resulted in the deaths of 346 people.
Ed welcomes former Boeing and FAA engineer Mike Dostert as they cover a wide range of topics including compliance issues and the systemic erosion of safety, regulatory oversight, and business culture, in a sector which may have lost its way.
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