DOJ reaches deal with Boeing to avoid prosecution over 737 Max crashes

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has reached a deal with Boeing that will allow the company to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed and killed 346 people, according to court papers filed Friday.

Under the “agreement in principle” that still needs to be finalized, Boeing would pay and invest more than $1.1 billion, including an additional $445 million for the crash victims‘ families, the Justice Department said. In return, the department would dismiss the fraud charge in the criminal case against the aircraft manufacturer.

“Ultimately, in applying the facts, the law, and Department policy, we are confident that this resolution is the most just outcome with practical benefits,” a Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement.

“Nothing will diminish the victims’ losses, but this resolution holds Boeing financially accountable, provides finality and compensation for the families and makes an impact for the safety of future air travelers.”

Many relatives of the passengers who died in the crashes, which took place off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019, have spent years pushing for a public trial, the prosecution of former company officials, and more severe financial punishment for Boeing.

“Although the DOJ proposed a fine and financial restitution to the victims’ families, the families that I represent contend that it is more important for Boeing to be held accountable to the flying public,” Paul Cassell, an attorney for many of the families in the long-running case, said in a statement earlier this week.

Boeing was accused of misleading the Federal Aviation Administration about aspects of the Max before the agency certified the plane for flight. Boeing did not tell airlines and pilots about a new software system, called MCAS, that could turn the plane’s nose down without input from pilots if a sensor detected that the plane might go into an aerodynamic stall.

The Max planes crashed after a faulty reading from the sensor pushed the nose down and pilots were unable to regain control. After the second crash, Max jets were grounded worldwide until the company redesigned MCAS to make it less powerful and to use signals from two sensors, not just one.

In 2021, Boeing settled with the Justice Department for $2.5 billion that included a previous $243.6 million fine, but last year, prosecutors said Boeing violated terms of the agreement by failing to make promised changes to detect and prevent violations of federal anti-fraud laws. Boeing agreed last July to plead guilty to the felony fraud charge instead of enduring a potentially lengthy public trial.

In December 2024, a federal judge rejected the plea deal, and since then, the Justice Department and Boeing have been discussing a new deal. A criminal trial was expected to start in Texas in June, and last week, the Justice Department said it would consider written submissions from crash victims’ family members through May 22.

The criminal case developed after the January 2024 midair blowout of the door on a Boeing jet being flown for Alaska Airlines. The incident led to federal investigations, cancelled jet sales, nearly $12 billion in revenue loss and the resignation of former CEO and President Dave Calhoun, who was replaced by Kelly Ortberg in September 2024.

Virginia Business Deputy Editor Kate Andrews contributed to this story.