Boeing needs more hands-on management, not resignations, says Ryanair CEO

By Joanna Plucinska

LONDON (Reuters) - Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary on Tuesday called for a revamp of Boeing management after the mid-air blowout of a cabin panel in an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9, but said senior management should stay.

O'Leary, whose airline is one of Boeing's largest customers with hundreds of MAX aircraft on order, told a news conference that Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun and its chief financial officer have his "full confidence and support".

But he later told Reuters that Boeing needs to ensure more hands-on management at its production hub in Seattle to provide quality assurances on its aircraft.

O'Leary added that the head of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Stan Deal, is mostly a "sales guy" and that more should be done to ensure oversight throughout the whole manufacturing process.

"When Stan is travelling - and he does a lot of travelling - who is minding the shop in Seattle?" O'Leary said.

O'Leary said he would like to see Boeing's head office moved back to Seattle from Virginia.

But he added that there is currently no one there to step up for Calhoun in the short term and that current senior management should remain in place for 12-18 months to deliver on safety and quality.

"I'm not calling for anybody's resignation," O'Leary said.

He added that, for the past two years, Ryanair has been calling for Boeing to increase numbers of quality control engineers and that it had promised to do so last week.

O'Leary also said that Ryanair had seen a marked improvement in the quality of aircraft deliveries from Boeing, with fewer defects in recent months.

The head of Boeing's commercial airplanes division on Monday said that the company would add further quality inspections for the 737 MAX after the Alaska Airlines mid-air blowout.

(Reporting by Joanna Plucinska; Additional reporting by Valerie Insinna; Writing by Conor Humphries; Editing by David Goodman)