Boeing cleanout: CEO, chair to go as safety crisis plagues the manufacturer

Boeing CEO David Calhoun has announced he will step down from the top job at the end of the year as multiple senior executives announce their departure from the embattled aircraft manufacturer.

The chair of the board, Larry Kellner and the head of the commercial planes business, Stan Deal will also leave the company following a series of safety/structural mishaps in recent months.

The first event, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 747 emergency landing at Portland International Airport after a hole about the size of a refrigerator emerged in the side of the plane, caused the cabin to depressurise.

In weeks to follow, Michael O’Leary, CEO of Ryanair, backed the manufacturer’s safety record but sent a team of engineers to inspect the Irish carrier’s order of Boeing aircraft under construction. On Monday, he welcomed the “much-needed” management changes,” Reuters reported.

Calhoun signed on as CEO of Boeing following two crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed a total of 350 people. He was initially supported by executive figures in the business, though production delays and details of manufacturing issues from regulatory bodies is thought to have soured feelings.

Boeing may find yet itself in deeper trouble as the US Justice Department (DOJ) conducts further examination of the manufacturer’s compliance with an agreement signed following the two deadly 737 Max crashes.

It is understood that should Boeing be found to have violated a 2021 agreement when handling the Alaska window blowout, criminal charges could be laid.