Boeing Employees Knew About Problematic 737 Max Before Fatal Crashes

Boeing is already under a lot of heat for technical problems with its beleaguered 737 Max plane and the last thing it needs is a PR disaster caused by its own ranks. Unfortunately for the company, that is exactly the case thanks to documents coming from Boeing itself as part of its required disclosure about the design and development of the plane. Suffice it to say, some people inside the company knew exactly about the problems that would tragically cost 346 lives later on.

Different employees seemed to take different positions on the entire process that allowed the problematic plane to fly. Perhaps the most audacious is one that boasted about how the company practically pulled one over the FAA. Another seemed to have some grievances about the people involved in the plane's development, calling them clowns supervised by monkeys.

Others, however, felt more remorseful over actions, like covering up information in an exchange with the US aviation regulator or expressed concerns about the safety of the plane. These internal messages were made before the first fatal crash in late 2018.

Boeing said that the communication revealed in the documents were not in line with the company's values and are taking appropriate action. That's another way of saying they will most likely be firing those who made the statements. This response, however, does not absolve Boeing from the fact that people inside the company knew about the dangers of the plane.

For its part, the FAA is more hand-washy about the documents, saying that nothing in the submission revealed anything new that wasn't already undergoing review. The FAA has also come under scrutiny for certifying the 737 Max and these documents could give it an opportunity to point the blame back at Boeing.