The 2021 settlement angered families of crash victims, who have long argued that Boeing and its executives should face greater consequences, including a public trial. Many of those families have reached civil settlements with the company, although a few are pursuing civil damages proceedings that are scheduled to begin later this year.
In 2022, a jury in Texas acquitted a former Boeing engineering pilot, Mark A. Forkner, of defrauding two of the company’s customers. This was the only criminal case brought by the federal government against anyone connected to the crashes.
The Justice Department has also opened a criminal investigation into Boeing in connection with a January flight in which a passenger plane crashed into a Max jet operated by Alaska Airlines. No major injuries were reported, but the incident renewed concerns among lawmakers and the public about the quality of Boeing jets.
The company has since announced a number of changes, including expanded training, simplified plans and procedures, and better quality control on supplier parts. As part of that effort, Boeing plans to buy troubled supplier Spirit AeroSystems, which makes the bodies of its 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner planes.
The appointment of a federal monitor as part of the plea represents a potential rebuke to the FAA, which oversees Boeing. The agency had been widely criticized for failings leading up to the crashes, including for giving the company too much leeway to monitor quality and safety on behalf of the government.
Since then, the FAA has adjusted its practices, limited the circumstances under which it delegates authority, and made a variety of other changes. After the Alaska Airlines incident, the agency increased its presence at Boeing’s Max factory, limited the company’s production and imposed other restrictions on Boeing.
Mark Walker contributed reporting.
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2024-06-30 23:19:29
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