The US Department of Justice and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are investigating quality control flaws in the production of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft by the American aerospace corporation Boeing, which could face a multimillion-dollar fine, The Wall Street Journal reported.

According to its sources, the two institutions were initially interested in the testimonies of some corporation employees who warned of flaws in the system for improving maneuverability to two 737 MAX plane crashes. Later, investigators drew attention to the detection of foreign objects in the fuel tanks and compartments of half of the new aircraft not delivered to customers of this series. The corporation conducted its inspection since last November. Bloomberg was the first to report foreign objects, citing Mark Jenks, general manager of the 737 MAX program, but it only spoke of a few aircraft.

According to the source, the FAA is considering the idea of imposing a multimillion-dollar fine on Boeing if suspicions are confirmed. The department also considers it appropriate to strengthen state control over the production of the corporation and to tighten quality checks on its conveyors. The final decision on this subject has not yet been made.

The 737 MAX aircraft has been suspended in December 2019 and the operation of the aircraft of this model is temporarily discontinued after two crashes: in Ethiopia, killing 157 people and in Indonesia, killing 189 people.