Boeing Faces Families Still Grieving From 737 Max Crashes in Court
Family members of victims of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash hold photos during a vigil outside the US Department of Transportation in Washington in 2019.
Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg
Two years ago, Boeing Co. reached an agreement with the US Department of Justice to defer prosecution on one charge that it had deceived regulators about changes in its 737 Max flight control system that were linked to a pair of airline disasters. The plane is flying again, and Boeing is raking in revenue from one of its most important programs. But now families of the crash victims are taking the company to court in a move that could inflict new legal and financial pain.
At an arraignment scheduled for Jan. 26 in Fort Worth, the families of 10 victims who died in the 737 Max crashes were expected to tell the court about the anguish, pain and financial hardship they suffered as a result of Boeing’s actions. Some were likely to express outrage that in their view the DOJ let the company off with a pledge of immunity, aiming to get the judge to slap Boeing with stiffer penalties.