Boeing will have to pay $2.5 billion in settlement dues after criminal charges were levied on the manufacturer centred on the troubled 737 Max. Officials have claimed that Boeing hid information from safety inspectors about the design of the aircraft. The US Justice Department has stated that the firm chose “profit over candour” that led to oversights of the planes which were involved in two deadly crashes. 

The resolution holds Boeing accountable for its actions

Nearly $500 million will go to families of the 346 people killed in the tragedies in Indonesia and Ethiopia. “The tragic crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 exposed fraudulent and deceptive conduct by employees of one of the world’s leading commercial airplane manufacturers,” acting assistant attorney general David Burns said. He added: “Boeing’s employees chose the path of profit over candour by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its 737 Max airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception. This resolution holds Boeing accountable for its employees’ criminal misconduct, addresses the financial impact to Boeing’s airline customers, and hopefully provides some measure of compensation to the crash-victims’ families and beneficiaries.” 

Boeing has highlighted that the agreement acknowledged that the firm “fell short.” Boeing chief executive, David Calhoun, added: “I firmly believe that entering into this resolution is the right thing for us to do – a step that appropriately acknowledges how we fell short of our values and expectations.This resolution is a serious reminder to all of us of how critical our obligation of transparency to regulators is, and the consequences that our company can face if any one of us falls short of those expectations.”

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