But shortly after takeoff from Portland International Airport in January of this year, a new Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max was destroyed by a deactivated emergency exit door.
In addition to facing legal action from passengers on the aircraft, Boeing is also facing a criminal investigation into the incident itself.
“The world is on us, and I know that we will come through this moment in better company,” stated Mr. Calhoun on Monday.
He referred to the Alaska Airlines episode as a “watershed moment” for Boeing in a message to employees, stating that the company needed to react with “humility and complete transparency.”
Washington authorities and Boeing’s airline patrons expressed renewed concerns following the incident that the company’s corporate culture prioritizes speed over safety.
The results coincided with another expert panel assessment on Boeing’s safety culture, which revealed a “disconnect” between normal employees and high management and indications that employees were reluctant to disclose issues for fear of reprisals.
Following the October 2018 and October 2019 plane disasters, it was discovered that defective flight control software was the root cause of the tragedies; Boeing was accused of purposefully withholding this information from regulatory bodies.