Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge and pay a $243.6 million fine to settle a U.S. Justice Department investigation into two fatal 737 MAX crashes. The crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019 resulted in the deaths of 346 people. The plea deal, requiring a judge’s approval, would label Boeing a convicted felon, a resolution that has drawn criticism from victims’ families seeking a trial and harsher penalties.
The plea could impact Boeing’s ability to secure government contracts with agencies like the U.S. Defense Department and NASA, though the company may seek waivers. This development follows a Justice Department finding in May that Boeing violated a 2021 settlement related to the crashes. The plea avoids a potentially damaging trial that could have further scrutinized Boeing’s decisions leading up to the accidents, as the company prepares for a leadership change and seeks approval for its acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems.
As part of the settlement, Boeing will invest at least $455 million over the next three years to enhance safety and compliance programs. The agreement mandates that Boeing’s board meet with relatives of the crash victims and includes the appointment of an independent monitor to oversee compliance, with publicly filed annual progress reports. Boeing will be on probation for the monitor’s three-year term.
