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The U.S. Department of Justice has reached an agreement in principle with Boeing that will allow the aerospace giant to avoid criminal prosecution for misleading federal regulators about its 737 MAX aircraft. The case stems from two deadly crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed a total of 346 people.
Under the terms of the deal, Boeing will not face a criminal trial on fraud charges. Instead, the company has committed to making significant financial payouts. As part of an agreement that would let the planemaker avoid prosecution, Boeing will pay or invest over $1.1 billion. This includes an additional $445 million designated for the families of the crash victims.
The settlement allows Boeing to avoid being labeled a convicted felon, a designation that could have jeopardized its extensive contracts with the U.S. government, including the Department of Defense. The charges centered on allegations that Boeing employees deceived the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) about a critical flight control system, known as MCAS, which was implicated in both the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines crashes. By avoiding trial, the Justice Department will move to dismiss the criminal case that was set to begin next month.
The decision has been met with significant pushback. Family members of those who died in the crashes have vocally opposed the settlement, arguing that it fails to hold the company and its executives accountable. Despite strong objections from the families of victims, who have pushed for years for a public trial, the Justice Department proceeded with the agreement after meeting with family representatives last week. The families maintain that a financial settlement is insufficient for what they see as corporate criminal conduct. For Boeing, the deal averts a potentially damaging criminal conviction, but the controversy surrounding its safety culture and transparency continues.
