Cases & Investigations
The Boeing Company

Wolf Popper LLP is investigating potential derivative claims  against members of the senior management and Board of Directors of The Boeing Company (“Boeing”) (NYSE: BA) concerning Boeing’s inability to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.

In October 2018, Lion Air flight 610 crashed killing all 189 people on board. Then in March 2019, Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 crashed killing all 157 people on board. Both crashes involved Boeing’s 737 Max aircraft and subsequent investigations found the crashes were caused by problems within certain portions of the aircraft’s software. In 2019, a derivative case was filed against Boeing’s directors that described how Boeing “decided to dismantle their lauded safety-engineering corporate culture in favor of what became a financial-engineering corporate culture.” The complaint highlighted that House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure issued findings “whereby Boeing withheld crucial information from the FAA, its airplane customers, and 737 MAX pilots about the plane’s design and newly-implemented software, which made the plane much more risky to fly.” Due to the egregious nature of the problems, the case was settled in February 2022 for $237.5 million.

Unfortunately, Boeing hasn’t learned its lesson. Shortly after takeoff on January 5, 2024, Alaska Airlines flight 1282 departed Portland International Airport and a door plug blew out, causing an uncontrolled decompression of the aircraft. Luckily the 171 passengers and six crew members survived the accident. Once again, a Boeing 737 Max aircraft was involved.

The New York Times published a story on March 28, 2024 entitled ‘Shortcuts Everywhere’: How Boeing Favored Speed Over Quality. The story said, “Such reports, and interviews with aviation safety experts and more than two dozen current and former Boeing employees, paint a worrying picture about a company long considered to be at the pinnacle of American engineering. They suggest that Boeing is struggling to improve quality years after two crashes of Max 8 planes in 2018 and 2019 killed nearly 350 people.” Shockingly, at a recent investor conference, Boeing’s chief financial officers said “For years, we prioritized the movement of the airplane through the factory over getting it done right, and that’s got to change.”

Boeing shareholders seeking more information about Wolf Popper’s investigation can contact Carl Stine at (212) 451-9631 or cstine@wolfpopper.com.
 
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Phone: Carl Stine - (212) 451-9631
Email: Outreach@wolfpopper.com