Boeing Reeled From ‘Terrible’ Press After First Max Crash
- Messages unsealed in Delaware court show stunned leaders
- Planemaker says it engaged in ‘robust safety oversight’
Dennis Muilenburg, then-chief executive officer of Boeing Co., testifies at a Senate hearing in Washington, D.C., in 2019.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Boeing Co. leaders were stunned by a barrage of negative articles after a 737 Max plunged into the Java Sea in October 2018, killing all aboard, according to internal communications.
The messages, unveiled Thursday under court order, show that executives and board directors worried about media coverage and indications that pilots on the Lion Air flight were caught unaware by an obscure flight-control system in the Max but not earlier 737 models. Lingering production snarls and the 737’s importance as Boeing’s biggest source of sales added to the tension.