
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a fraud conspiracy charge in a deal with the Justice Department to avoid facing trial in a federal criminal case linked to deadly crashes involving two 737 Max planes that killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>In a&nbsp;<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.342881/gov.uscourts.txnd.342881.204.0_2.pdf" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">court filing</a>&nbsp;late on Sunday, the Justice Department said Boeing will plead guilty to the felony charge of “conspiracy to defraud the United States, specifically, the lawful function of the Federal Aviation Administration Aircraft Evaluation Group.”</p>



<p>As part of the deal, Boeing agreed to pay an additional fine of $243.6 million—the same penalty the company had paid as part of a settlement in 2021 that it was later&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-justice-department-737-max-82145b25ed988cd8cae0bce3de79ce9d" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">accused of violating</a>.</p>



<p>The filing notes that Boeing&#8217;s total fine of $487.2 million is the maximum allowed under law for the charged offenses.</p>



<p>The plane maker will also be required to invest approximately $455 million over the next three years to improve its compliance and safety programs.</p>



<p>The deal will have to be approved by a federal judge to take effect.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">WHAT TO WATCH FOR</h2>



<p>The plea deal only covers Boeing&#8217;s actions in the lead-up to the fatal crashes of two 737 Max planes in 2018 and 2019. It does not offer the company immunity in any other incidents—including one in January in which a door plug blew off an Alaskan Airlines flight minutes after take off. Boeing still faces a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-ntsb-door-plug-emergency-landing-2d23408a25eff999579c88071836dbec" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">separate criminal probe</a>&nbsp;over the incident.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>In October 2018, a Boeing 737 Max, operated by Indonesian low-cost carrier Lion Air, crashed into the Java Sea minutes after take off, killing all 189 passengers and crew onboard. In March 2019, a similar crash of an Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max resulted in the death of all 157 people on board. The crashes caused civil aviation authorities around the world to ground all variants of the 737 Max. In 2021, Boeing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-indonesia-61b2ccb06d4eebb2d4091c6d90147f72" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">agreed to</a>&nbsp;a $2.5 billion settlement to avoid criminal charges and admitted to misleading investigators about the safety of the planes. The settlement included a fine of $243.6 million, $1.77 billion in payment to airlines affected by the 737 Max’s grounding, and $500 million to families of the passengers killed in the two crashes. In May this year, the DOJ&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-justice-department-737-max-82145b25ed988cd8cae0bce3de79ce9d" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">accused</a>&nbsp;Boeing of violating the settlement.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-section-title">SECTION TITLE</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/06/30/justice-department-planning-fraud-charge-against-boeing/">Justice Department Planning Fraud Charge Against Boeing</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2024/07/01/boeing-announces-47-billion-deal-to-acquire-supplier-spirit-aerosystems/">Boeing Buying Embattled 737 Supplier Spirit AeroSystems For $4.7 Billion</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


US-AVIATION-BOEING

Boeing Will Plead Guilty To Fraud Charge—Avoiding Trial Over 737 Max Crashes


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Boeing is expected to avoid criminal prosecution after the Justice Department recently found it&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoniopequenoiv/2024/05/14/boeing-violated-agreement-protecting-it-from-criminal-charges-over-737-max-crashes-justice-department-says/">violated a $2.5 billion settlement</a>&nbsp;shielding it from charges over two 737 Max 8 model crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed a total of 346 people, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/us/politics/boeing-doj-deferred-prosecution-agreement.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimes" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>, which reported that department officials have deemed prosecution of Boeing “too legally risky.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Instead of criminally prosecuting Boeing, the Justice Department plans to offer the aerospace company a deferred prosecution agreement requiring it to install an independent government watchdog tasked with keeping track of safety and quality control, the Times reported, citing two anonymous sources.</p>



<p>The Justice Department was able to seek prosecution of Boeing, which was charged with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/boeing-charged-737-max-fraud-conspiracy-and-agrees-pay-over-25-billion" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">conspiracy to defraud the U.S.</a>, in May after federal officials said the company&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoniopequenoiv/2024/05/14/boeing-violated-agreement-protecting-it-from-criminal-charges-over-737-max-crashes-justice-department-says/">violated its 2021 prosecution agreement</a>&nbsp;by “failing to design, implement and enforce a compliance and ethics program” made to detect and stop potential fraud violations.</p>



<p>The installation of a federal monitor to supervise safety improvements at Boeing is seen by officials as a more efficient way to get the company to fall in line with safety and quality control improvements, according to the Times.</p>



<p>The new settlement offer is expected to be given to Boeing within the month, though terms of the deal could still change, the Times noted.</p>



<p>Boeing and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to Forbes’ request for comment.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



<p>$2.5 billion. That is the whopping figure Boeing agreed to pay in the settlement, which included $1.77 billion in compensation to be paid out to Boeing 737 Max airline customers, a $500 million crash-victim beneficiary fund and a criminal penalty totaling $243.6 million.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Boeing’s 2021 settlement was reached after the company was accused of conspiracy to defraud the FAA’s aircraft evaluation arm in connection with the agency’s probe into the 737 Max airplane. Boeing&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/boeing-charged-737-max-fraud-conspiracy-and-agrees-pay-over-25-billion" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">admitted in court documents</a>&nbsp;it misled the FAA about a part known as the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System, which automatically pushes down the nose of the aircraft when it detects too high of a pitch. Boeing’s cover-up led to pilots flying the 737 MAX for Boeing’s airline customers without being provided information on the system in manuals or training materials. The FAA concluded the system may have played a role in the 2018 and 2019 crashes that occurred near Indonesia and Ethiopia. The 2018 Indonesia crash killed all 189 passengers and crew on board while the 2019 crash killed 157.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoniopequenoiv/2024/05/14/boeing-violated-agreement-protecting-it-from-criminal-charges-over-737-max-crashes-justice-department-says/">Boeing Violated Agreement Protecting It From Criminal Charges Over 737 Max Crashes, Justice Department Says&nbsp;</a>(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/us/politics/boeing-doj-deferred-prosecution-agreement.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimes" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Boeing Is Expected to Evade Criminal Charges for Violating Settlement</a>&nbsp;(New York Times)</p>


British Airways Retires First Of Its Last 747 Jumbo Jets

Boeing Will Likely Avoid Criminal Charges After Violating $2.5 Billion Settlement Linked To Fatal Crashes, Report Says


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>The Federal Aviation Administration&nbsp;<a href="https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/faa-halts-boeing-max-production-expansion-improve-quality-control-also-lays-out-extensive" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;Wednesday a pathway toward resumed flights for Boeing 737 Max 9 jets, but it won’t allow Boeing to expand production of the planes after a hole was blown into the side of an Alaska Airlines flight using one of the jets earlier this month, prompting temporary groundings and thorough inspections from the FAA.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>Boeing will be prohibited from expanding production of its Max jets, including the 737-9 Max model, under the order from the FAA on Wednesday.</p>



<p>The FAA also said it approved an inspection and maintenance process that will be performed on all of the 171 grounded Boeing 737-9 Max planes, which if successful, will make the aircraft eligible to return to service.</p>



<p>The inspection and maintenance process was approved after the FAA reviewed data collected from inspections on 40 grounded planes.</p>



<p>Maintenance performed on the aircraft will involve inspection of exit door plugs and parts associated with them, bolts, guide tracks and the correction of damage.</p>



<p>FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said in a statement that the extensive review of the planes wouldn’t mark a return to “business as usual for Boeing.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>The National Transportation Safety Board is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2024/01/09/investigators-will-probe-if-alaska-airlines-737-maxs-door-panel-was-securely-bolted/?sh=1f28f5fd6228">investigating</a>&nbsp;whether or not the door panel that blew off the Alaska Airlines flight was properly bolted before takeoff. Investigators have found the plane’s plug door but have yet to recover the bolts associated with it. The FAA recommended this week that airlines inspect door plugs on Boeing 737-900ER aircraft, a different model from the one involved in the Alaska Airlines incident. The agency, which said the 737-900ER’s door plugs “have an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2024/01/22/faa-asks-airlines-to-inspect-door-plugs-on-boeing-737-900er-planes/?sh=7222a8fafe91">identical door plug design</a>” to the Max 9, asked airlines to inspect four points where a bolt is used to secure the door to the airframe of the 737-900ER.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2024/01/22/faa-asks-airlines-to-inspect-door-plugs-on-boeing-737-900er-planes/?sh=7222a8fafe91">FAA Asks Airlines To Inspect Door Plugs On Boeing 737-900ER Planes</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)</p>


FAA Clears Way For Boeing 737 Max 9s To Potentially Resume Flying—But Prohibits Increased Production


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>The Federal Aviation Administration announced Thursday it’s investigating whether Boeing failed to ensure its planes were safe for flying after a a “plug” door fell off a 737 Max 9 plane flying from Portland, Oregon.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The FAA&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/FAANews/status/1745491519266542047" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;it notified Boeing of the investigation, saying it was prompted by the Alaska Airlines 1282 flight, where a “plug” type passenger door blew off the Boeing Model 737 Max 9 plane mid-air, prompting an emergency landing.</p>



<p>Every Boeing 737 Max 9 with a “plug” door has been grounded since Saturday.</p>



<p>The FAA said that the “incident should have never happened and it cannot happen again.”</p>



<p>In a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.boeing.com/737-9-updates/index.page" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">statement</a>&nbsp;Thursday, Boeing said it would cooperate “fully and transparently” in both the FAA investigation and an ongoing National Transportation Safety Board investigation.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Safety concerns regarding Boeing’s 737 Max 9 planes have continued since the Jan. 5 incident. Both Alaska Airlines and United Airlines—the two U.S. airlines that use the 737 Max 9 planes—have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/no-data-captured-alaska-airlines-737-cockpit-voice-recorder-ntsb-chair-2024-01-08/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;finding loose parts on grounded Max 9 aircraft. And Wednesday, Alaska Airlines&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2024/01/10/alaska-airlines-cancels-all-boeing-737-max-9-flights-this-week-after-hole-blown-into-plane-during-flight/?sh=6d5a18062273">canceled</a>&nbsp;all flights using Boeing 737 Max 9 planes, awaiting instruction from the FAA. It represents the latest major safety setback for Boeing, which garnered international scrutiny in 2019, two Boeing 737 Max 8 planes were involved in fatal crashes within the span of less than a year. The National Transportation Safety Board is also conducting an investigation into the Alaska Airlines incident, and has since&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2024/01/08/jet-door-blown-off-alaska-airlines-plane-is-found-in-oregon-schoolteachers-backyard/?sh=2aa3337e2d43">found</a>&nbsp;the plane door, which landed in an Oregon school teacher’s backyard.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">TANGENT</h2>



<p>Elon Musk has used the Boeing incident to continue his attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion corporate policies, implying without evidence on X in recent days that the plane-maker’s pursuit of diversity may have made air travel less safe. The posts drew <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/elon-musk-boeing-dei-diversity-x-posts-pilots-rcna133351" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">rebuke</a> from civil rights groups.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WHAT WE DON’T KNOW</h2>



<p>When the grounding of Boeing planes with “plug” doors may end. The FAA said in its Jan. 9 announcement that “the safety of the flying public, not speed, will determine the timeline for returning the Boeing 737-9 Max to service.”</p>


Boeing Under Investigation For 737 Max 9


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">TOPLINE</h2>



<p>Rescue efforts are underway after a China Eastern Airlines plane carrying 132 people crashed in Guangxi province, Chinese state&nbsp;<a href="https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-03-21/Rescue-underway-following-aviation-incident-in-China-18AbXSz8ohi/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">media</a>&nbsp;and local aviation officials&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-60819760" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>, causing a fire on the mountainside.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The number of casualties and the precise cause of the crash is not known, according to state-owned media outlet&nbsp;<a href="https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-03-21/Rescue-underway-following-aviation-incident-in-China-18AbXSz8ohi/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CGTV</a>.</p>



<p>The Boeing 737 jet was carrying 123 passengers and nine crew members, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China.</p>



<p>Rescue crews and a team of CAAC officials have been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-media-accidents-b0644cb141eb7313bfa4e1e250033017" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dispatched</a>&nbsp;to the scene.</p>



<p>The flight—which appears to be China Eastern Flight MU5735—was traveling from Kunming to Guangzhou.</p>



<p>Data from flight-tracking website <a href="https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/mu5735#2b367bc1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">FlightRadar24</a> shows the plane losing speed and altitude before it stopped transmitting data near the city of Wuzhou.</p>



<p><strong><em>By Robert Hart, Forbes Africa</em></strong></p>


Incheon International Airport As South Korea Lifts Quarantine For Fully Vaccinated Travelers

Boeing 737 Jet Carrying 132 People Crashes In China


<p><a href="https://policies.google.com/privacy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>TOPLINE Boeing’s board of directors agreed Friday to pay the company hundreds of millions of dollars and impose new safety measures, closing out a lawsuit brought by Boeing shareholders that began after two crashes of the latest version of its best-selling passenger jet killed hundreds of people and caused regulators to ground the jet worldwide.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



<p>The proposed settlement — which a Delaware state judge&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/boeing-board-to-add-safety-expert-make-other-changes-in-737-max-settlement-11636150675" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">still needs to approve</a>&nbsp;— comes more than a year after New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and the Fire and Police Pension Association of Colorado&nbsp;<a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/2020/08/new-york-state-comptroller-dinapoli-fire-and-police-pension-association-colorado-announce-appointment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sued</a>&nbsp;Boeing’s directors.</p>



<p>As part of the settlement, members of Boeing’s board of directors agreed to pay $237.5 million directly to the company — a sum that will come from the directors’ insurers — according to a copy of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/files/press/pdf/stipulation-of-settlement-boeing.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">agreement</a>&nbsp;released Friday evening by DiNapoli’s office.</p>



<p>Boeing will also hire an ombudsperson to serve as a “neutral third party” to handle any concerns from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.faa.gov/other_visit/aviation_industry/designees_delegations/delegated_organizations/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">company employees</a>&nbsp;who work with the Federal Aviation Administration.</p>



<p>The board of directors will add a new member with experience in “aviation/aerospace, engineering, and/or product safety oversight,” and moving forward, it’s expected to ensure at least three board members have a background in those areas.</p>



<p>The settlement agreement noted the defendants “have denied and continue to deny” any allegations of wrongdoing.</p>



<p>Boeing told&nbsp;<em>Forbes&nbsp;</em>in a statement the company has already “taken significant actions to reinforce and strengthen our commitment to aviation safety,” and said the settlement “builds on those actions with additional oversight and governance reforms.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">CRUCIAL QUOTE</h2>



<p>“This settlement will send an important message that directors cannot shortchange public safety and other mission-critical risks,” DiNapoli, whose office oversees New York’s pension fund for government employees, said in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/2021/11/nys-comptroller-dinapoli-and-fire-and-police-pension-association-colorado-statements-proposed" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">statement Friday</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



<p>Boeing’s first 737 MAX entered service in <a href="https://www.boeing.com/company/about-bca/washington/737max-1st-delivery-05-17-17.page" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2017</a>, the latest iteration of the company’s best-selling plane, which first flew in 1967. But the new version of the plane was grounded worldwide and deliveries halted after the crash of a MAX jet in Ethiopia in March 2019, which came five months after a crash in Indonesia.The crashes, which killed 346 people, were <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/18/magazine/boeing-737-max-crashes.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blamed on</a> a faulty addition to the flight control system that hinged on a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/01/business/boeing-737-max-crash.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">single sensor</a>, causing the planes to pitch downward if it sensed that the plane’s angle of attack was too high. The FAA eventually cleared the MAX to return to service <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2020/11/18/boeing-737-max-cleared-to-fly-again-after-nearly-two-years/?sh=1ffba36b704e">late last year</a>. But DiNapoli and the Colorado pension plan argued the disaster was linked to a broader lack of attention to safety by board members, who they <a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/2020/08/new-york-state-comptroller-dinapoli-fire-and-police-pension-association-colorado-announce-appointment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">claimed</a> “breached their fiduciary duties to the company by dismantling Boeing’s lauded safety-engineering corporate culture in favor of what became a financial-engineering corporate culture.” The two shareholders <a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/2020/08/new-york-state-comptroller-dinapoli-fire-and-police-pension-association-colorado-announce-appointment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">served as lead plaintiffs</a> in a lawsuit filed against the board <a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/files/press/pdf/stipulation-of-settlement-boeing.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">on Boeing’s behalf</a>, an arrangement known as a “derivative lawsuit.”</p>



<p><strong><em>By <meta charset="utf-8">Joe Walsh, Forbes Staff</em></strong></p>


Boeing Directors Settle Shareholder Lawsuit Over 737 MAX Crashes For $237.5 Million


<p id="h-topline"><strong>TOPLINE</strong> Boeing was <a href="https://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=25740" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fined</a> $6.6 million by the Federal Aviation Administration Thursday over issues related to safety and compliance, as both the embattled firm and the Federal Aviation Administration continue to face significant scrutiny following the crashes involving Boeing’s 737 MAX aircraft.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h3>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Boeing will pay $5.4 million because it failed to meet the conditions of a 2015 settlement <a href="https://www.faa.gov/foia/electronic_reading_room/settlement_agreements/media/20151218-boeing-settlement-agreement.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">agreement</a> requiring the company to improve its regulatory compliance processes. </li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Boeing will also pay an additional $1.2 million to settle two enforcement cases, one of which <a href="https://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=25156" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">alleged</a> that some Boeing managers who oversaw staff issuing safety certifications on behalf of the FAA were not approved to do so.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>In that case, the FAA also alleged Boeing managers “exerted undue pressure or interfered with” those staffers involved in safety checks.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>The other case alleged Boeing failed to follow its own quality control procedures and pressured staffers who were inspecting the 787 Dreamliner, which later was found to have several <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/boeing-widens-787-dreamliner-inspections-after-finding-more-assembly-line-defects-11607971193" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">defects</a>.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>In a statement, Boeing said “the announcement today fairly resolves previously-announced civil penalty actions.”</li></ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h3>



<p>Boeing is still trying to move past two crashes in 2018 and 2019 involving its 737 MAX aircraft that left 346 dead. Not only did the crisis tarnish its image, the crashes cost the company more than $19 billion. The Justice Department last month ordered the company to pay $2.51 billion to resolve criminal charges related to the crash after prosecutors alleged Boeing knowingly deceived the FAA during the 737 MAX certification process. The Transportation Department Inspector General also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.oig.dot.gov/library-item/38302" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">concluded</a>&nbsp;this week that the FAA’s lax certification process doesn’t offer enough oversight and needs to make improvements to prevent other disasters.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h3>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2021/01/07/boeing-to-pay-25-billion-for-misleading-us-government-about-737-max/?sh=781c452e6f59">Boeing To Pay $2.5 Billion For Misleading U.S. Government About 737 MAX&nbsp;</a>(Forbes)</p>



<p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jemimamcevoy/2020/11/18/boeing-737-max-cleared-to-fly-again-after-nearly-two-years/?sh=475fe12d704e">Boeing 737 MAX Cleared To Fly Again After Nearly Two Years</a> (Forbes)</p>



<p><strong><em>By Rachel Sandler, Forbes Staff</em></strong></p>


US-AIRPLANE-TRAVEL-TRANSPORT

Boeing Fined $6.6 Million For Failing To Comply With FAA Rules


<p><strong><span class="has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color">Topline</span></strong>: After 20 long and turbulent months of being grounded, the Boeing 737 MAX is ready to take off into the skies as it gets approval to return to commercial service, says the U.S.  Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Wednesday, November 18.  This follows after The Boeing Company had to suspend the services of the airplanes due to the crash of Ethiopian Airline’s Boeing 737 MAX in March 2019.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong><span class="has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color">Key Facts</span></strong></h4>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>The FAA released a<em> </em><a href="https://www.faa.gov/foia/electronic_reading_room/boeing_reading_room/media/737_RTS_Summary.pdf"><em>comprehensive and methodical safety review process</em></a><em> </em>report on Wednesday that took 20 months to complete. The report is to address the safety issues regarding the plane.&nbsp;</li><li>Boeing 737 MAX was grounded in March 2019 when 346 lives were lost within a five-month timeline.&nbsp;</li><li>On October 29, 2018, a Lion Air&nbsp; Boeing 737 MAX crashed after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia. 13 minutes after takeoff, Flight 610 crashed killing 189 people.</li><li>Five months later, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed shortly after take-off on March 10 killing all 149 people on board.&nbsp;</li><li>This led to many big airlines having to ground their Boeing 737 Max planes due to safety concerns. This included the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) who ordered all Chinese airlines to ground their Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets a day after the fatal Ethiopian crash. American Airlines, Comair Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines are just to name a few that also made the decision to ground their 737s.&nbsp;</li><li>“Throughout our transparent process, we cooperated closely with our foreign counterparts on every aspect of the return to service. Additionally, FAA Administrator Steve Dickson personally took the recommended pilot training and piloted the Boeing 737 MAX, so he could experience the handling of the aircraft firsthand,” the FAA statement read.&nbsp;</li><li>This stamp of approval allows airlines that are under the FAA&#8217;s jurisdiction to take the necessary steps to resume services.&nbsp;</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong><span class="has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color">Crucial Numbers</span></strong></h4>



<p>According to <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/17/business/boeing-737-max-grounding-cost/index.html">CNN</a>, Boeing stated that this longest grounding in commercial aviation history has cost the company $20 Billion. This includes $8.6 billion to compensate customers who had their planes grounded, $5 billion for unusual costs of production, and $6.3 billion for increased costs of the 737 Max program.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong><span class="has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color">Crucial Quote</span></strong></h4>



<p>&#8220;We will never forget the lives lost in the two tragic accidents that led to the decision to suspend operations,&#8221; said David Calhoun, chief executive officer of The Boeing Company. &#8220;These events and the lessons we have learned as a result have reshaped our company and further focused our attention on our core values of safety, quality, and integrity.&#8221;</p>


Tag: The Boeing Company

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