2019年经济学人 波音和FAA:亲密之罪(2)（在线收听）

Boeing's team is in Ethiopia helping the investigators. The company says it is "devoted to the quality and safety of the aircraft we design, produce and support".

波音的团队正在埃塞俄比亚帮助调查。该公司表示将“致力于我们所设计、生产和支持的飞机的质量和安全性”。

Jim Hall, former chairman of America's National Transportation Safety Board, another regulator,

另一监管机构，美国国家运输安全委员会的前主席吉姆·霍尔

sees the root of the problem in the FAA's close relationship with Boeing.

认为问题的根源在于FAA和波音的亲密关系。

Since 2001 the company has lobbied vigorously to perform more of its own safety tests.

自2001年起，该公司积极游说要求更多的进行自家的安全测试。

In 2005 the FAA began to allow Boeing to do more self-certification. "It's like putting children in charge of the sweet shop," says a former Boeing adviser.

2005年，FAA开始允许波音进行更多的自我认证。“这就像是让孩子负责管理糖果店一样，”一名前波音顾问表示。

An investigation by the transportation department in 2012 found that the FAA had not done enough to "hold Boeing accountable".

2012年交通部的一项调查发现FAA在“让波音尽责方面”做得不够。

It quoted FAA employees who had reported retaliation for speaking up about problems with Boeing's previous designs.

其引用FAA员工的话，他们称自己因公开谈论波音之前设计中存在的问题而遭到报复。

Scott Brenner, a former associate administrator at the FAA, points out that safety inspectors at the FAA's office in Seattle,

FAA前副行政官斯科特·布伦纳指出，FAA西雅图办公室（这里也是波音主要生产设备所在地）的检察员

home to Boeing's main production facilities, may have worked closely with Boeing's own safety experts for decades.

可能在几十年来都和波音自家的安全专家有着亲密的合作。

A once-antagonistic relationship has grown chummier in recent years. Posters warning "don't talk to the FAA" are no longer a common sight.

在近些年中，曾今的敌对关系已经变得越来越亲密。“不要和FAA说话”的警告海报已经不再常见了。

It has not helped that President Donald Trump has left the top job at the FAA vacant since January 2018.

自2018年1月以来，唐纳德·特朗普总统就把FAA的局长一职空了出来，但这并没有起到帮助。

The acting administrator lacks all the powers of a permanent head, notes Mr Hall.

霍尔先生指出，代理管理者缺乏局长的所有权利。

Financial constraints encouraged the FAA to outsource certification to planemakers.

财政紧缩促使FAA将认证外包给飞机制造商。

Its budget increased by a sixth between 2002 and 2018, while American air traffic grew by 40%.

在2002年和2018年间，其预算增加六分之一，而美国空中交通增长了40%。

On March 19th Mr Trump named Stephen Dickson, a respected former senior executive at Delta Air Lines, to head the FAA.

3月19日，特朗普任命史蒂芬·迪克森这位备受尊敬的前达美航空公司高层出任FAA局长。

By then, other regulators' confidence in the FAA had been shot.

到那时，其他监管机构对FAA的信心已经大打折扣了。

The Ethiopian authorities have declined to give the black box to the FAA for data retrieval, sending it to France instead.

埃塞俄比亚当局已经拒绝将黑匣子交给FAA进行数据检索，而是将它交给了法国。

Those in Canada and Europe are re-examining decisions to approve the 737 Max based on mutual-recognition agreements with America.

加拿大和欧洲监管机构正在重新审查那些基于和美国的相互认可协议而批准的737 Max飞机。

Rather than trust the FAA, they may order their own tests before certifying future Boeing aircraft as airworthy.

他们或许宁愿在未来认证波音飞机的适飞性能前制定自己的检测也不愿再相信FAA了。