Dave Calhoun’s stewardship of Boeing as its CEO has been catastrophic. As he prepares to go, comforted by a $45 million retirement package, Boeing could soon face something virtually unthinkable for such a legendary company—criminal charges.
As first reported by Reuters, federal prosecutors have decided to recommend that the Justice Department prosecute Boeing for violating the terms of a deal made in 2021 in which a charge of committing fraud related to two crashes involving the 737 MAX that killed 346 people was deferred—as long as Boeing kept a pledge to seriously overhaul its compliance with safety regulations. The prosecutors say that the pledge has not been kept.
But the overriding charge leveled at Calhoun is that he, together with his board and major stockholders, have used the company as a gushing ATM, putting making money ahead of making airplanes.
