Aerospace giant Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge related to the fatal crashes of its 737 Max planes, which claimed the lives of 346 people. The U.S. Justice Department announced that the company will pay a $243.6 million fine and be subject to increased monitoring and reporting for three years as part of the plea deal.
The criminal charge stems from allegations that Boeing deceived regulators about its MCAS flight control system, which was implicated in two crashes in 2018 and 2019. The tragedies led to the global grounding of the aircraft for more than a year and intense scrutiny over the company’s safety record.
While the guilty plea allows Boeing to avoid a public criminal trial, families of the victims have criticized the agreement as a “sweetheart deal” that fails to hold the company fully accountable for the loss of life. The plea marks a significant blow to the reputation of the prominent military contractor, as it now carries a criminal record.
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By pleading guilty, Boeing will avoid the spectacle of a criminal trial – something that victims’ families have been pressing for.
The company has been in crisis over its safety record since two near-identical crashes involving 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019. It led to the global grounding of the plane for more than a year.
In 2021, prosecutors charged Boeing with one count of conspiracy to defraud regulators, alleging it had deceived the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) about its MCAS flight control system, which was implicated in both crashes.
It agreed not to prosecute Boeing if the company paid a penalty and successfully completed a three-year period of increased monitoring and reporting.
But in January, shortly before that period was due to end, a door panel in a Boeing plane operated by Alaska Airlines blew out soon after take-off and forced the jet to land.
No-one was injured during the incident but it intensified scrutiny over how much progress Boeing had made on improving its safety and quality record.
In May, the DoJ said it had found Boeing had violated the terms of the agreement, opening up the possibility of prosecution.
