Boeing will avoid prosecution over fatal crashes of its 737 Max aircraft, agreeing to pay $1.1 billion in fines and improve compliance after two deadly accidents linked to faulty flight control systems.
A non-prosecution agreement has been reached between Boeing and the US Department of Justice, which will allow the company to avoid prosecution over two fatal crashes of its 737 Max aircraft.
The two crashes, in 2018 and 2019, resulted in the deaths of 346 people. Both incidents were linked to ‘faulty flight control systems’ . The crashes led to fraud charges against a former top Boeing pilot, who was acquitted in 2022.
The company’s 737 Max models were grounded globally for almost two years after one of the crashes.
As part of the deal, Boeing will admit to ‘conspiracy to obstruct and impede’ an investigation by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and pay more than $1.1 billion in fines.
The company will also have to continue making improvements to its anti-fraud compliance and ethics program.
Not all families of crash victims support the deal. Some have expressed outrage at the prospect of Boeing avoiding prosecution. ‘It’s a sweetheart deal,’ says Robert Clifford, a lawyer representing relatives of crash victims.
Others, however, welcome the agreement as a step towards accountability and justice.
In 2021, Boeing reached a settlement with prosecutors that protected it from prosecution for three years. However, the company was found to have violated this deal by failing to create and follow a compliance and ethics program aimed at detecting violations of US laws.
In 2022, a former top Boeing pilot was acquitted in a fraud trial linked to one of the crashes.
The Justice Department is expected to file a motion to dismiss the case by late next week once the agreement is finalized. The department stated that the agreement guarantees further accountability and substantial benefits from Boeing immediately, while avoiding the uncertainty and litigation risk presented by proceeding to trial.
