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Boeing fires boss Muilenburg amid 737 troubles Boeing fires boss Muilenburg amid 737 troubles
(about 1 hour later)
Boeing has fired its chief executive, Dennis Muilenburg, a move the board of directors said "was necessary to restore confidence" in the firm.Boeing has fired its chief executive, Dennis Muilenburg, a move the board of directors said "was necessary to restore confidence" in the firm.
David Calhoun, Boeing's current chairman, will take over as chief executive and president from 13 January. Mr Muilenburg has been under pressure since two deadly crashes involving Boeing's best selling 737 Max airliner.
Mr Muilenburg had faced calls for his resignation over the company's response to two deadly crashes involving the firm's best-selling 737 Max airliner. Lawmakers had accused the firm of putting profit over safety, as it rushed to get planes to customers.
The jet has been grounded since March. Families of the victims called the change a good "first step" but expressed doubts over his replacement.
Last week, Boeing said it would halt production of the plane while it waited for regulators to certify the jet's safety. Boeing named David Calhoun, who has served on the firm's board since 2009 and is its current chairman, as chief executive and president.
"The board of directors decided that a change in leadership was necessary to restore confidence in the company moving forward as it works to repair relationships with regulators, customers, and all other stakeholders," Boeing's statement said. "While the resignation of Mr Muilenburg is a step in the right direction, it is clear that the Boeing Company needs a revamp of its corporate governance," said Paul Njoroge, who lost his wife, three children and mother-in-law when Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed in March.
Boeing added that Lawrence Kellner would become non-executive chairman with immediate effect. Zipporah Kuria, whose father was also killed on the Ethiopian Airlines flight, said Mr Muilenburg should have been replaced "a long time ago".
"I feel as though a lot more people should have resigned including the person who's becoming CEO," she also told the BBC.
'Necessary' change
The crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia occurred within five months of each other and killed 346 people.
Boeing's fleet of 737 Max planes has been grounded worldwide since the second incident. Last week, Boeing said it would halt production of the plane while it waited for regulators to certify its safety.
While the company had been hoping to have the planes back in the air by the end of this year, US regulators made it clear that they would not be certified to return to the skies that quickly.
Then on Friday, the company's reputation took another hit when its Starliner spacecraft suffered technical problems that prevented it from taking the right path to the International Space Station.
Boeing's board said it had "decided that a change in leadership was necessary to restore confidence in the company moving forward as it works to repair relationships with regulators, customers, and all other stakeholders".
Mr Calhoun, a former private equity executive and Boeing board member since 2009, will take over from 13 January.
Lawrence Kellner, a board member since 2011, is to become non-executive chairman with immediate effect.
"Under the company's new leadership, Boeing will operate with a renewed commitment to full transparency, including effective and proactive communication with the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration], other global regulators and its customers," it said.
Michael Stumo, who lost his daughter Samya Rose in one of the 737 crashes and has organised victims' families against Boeing, called the resignation a "good first step toward restoring Boeing to a company that focuses on safety and innovation".Michael Stumo, who lost his daughter Samya Rose in one of the 737 crashes and has organised victims' families against Boeing, called the resignation a "good first step toward restoring Boeing to a company that focuses on safety and innovation".
"The next step is for several board members who are underperforming or unqualified to resign," he said."The next step is for several board members who are underperforming or unqualified to resign," he said.
Software problem Mr Njoroge said he did not think Mr Calhoun was the right person for the job given his long tenure on the company's board.
The 737 Max crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia occurred within five months of each other and killed 346 people. "The company should be led and managed by qualified individuals who are committed to adhering to its fundamental responsibility - to manufacture and deliver safe planes," he said. "He is not the right person for the job. In fact, he should resign as well."
Air safety officials investigating the tragedies have identified an automated control system in the plane, known as MCAS, as a factor. 'Software problem'
Boeing has said the software system, which relied on a single sensor, received erroneous data, which led it to override pilot commands and push the aircraft downwards. Air safety officials investigating the tragedies have identified an automated control system in the plane, known as MCAS, as a factor in both crashes.
Boeing has said the MCAS software system, which relied on a single sensor, received erroneous data, which led it to override pilot commands and push the aircraft downwards.
It has said it is fixing the software and has overhauled its review procedures.It has said it is fixing the software and has overhauled its review procedures.
But US lawmakers, who are investigating the company, have said the firm was aware before the crashes that the system could be unreliable. They have accused the company of prioritising profit over safety as it pushed to get the planes to customers. But US lawmakers, who are investigating the company, have said the firm was aware that the software system could be unreliable and accused the company of trying to hide the risks and rush the plane back into service.
Boeing's entire fleet of 737 Max planes has been grounded worldwide since March. The company had been hoping to have the planes back in the air by the end of this year, but US regulators made it clear that they would not be certified to return to the skies that quickly. Congressman Peter DeFazio, who leads a committee investigating Boeing, had called for Mr Muilenburg's resignation in an interview with the New York Times, published over the weekend.
Boeing's reputation took another hit last week when its Starliner spacecraft suffered technical problems that prevented it from taking the right path to the International Space Station. "It's clear Dennis Muilenburg's ouster was long overdue," he said in a statement on Monday.
'Renewed commitment'
Replacing Mr Muilenburg is intended improve the company's relationship with officials, Boeing's board said.
"Under the company's new leadership, Boeing will operate with a renewed commitment to full transparency, including effective and proactive communication with the FAA [Federal Aviation Authority], other global regulators and its customers," it said.
Mr Muilenburg first joined Boeing in 1985. He led the company's defence, space and security division prior to his appointment as chief executive in 2015.Mr Muilenburg first joined Boeing in 1985. He led the company's defence, space and security division prior to his appointment as chief executive in 2015.
He was stripped of his role as chairman of Boeing's board of directors in October and later agreed to give up his bonus. However, Boeing had continued to express confidence in him. He was stripped of his role as chairman of Boeing's board of directors in October and later agreed to give up his bonus. However, Boeing, including Mr Calhoun, had continued to express confidence in him as recently as last month.
Congressman Peter DeFazio, who leads a committee investigating Boeing, told the New York Times this weekend that the firm's decision to retain Mr Muilenburg suggested it was not "truly serious" about safety. Dennis Muilenburg's departure was inevitable, although the timing was unexpected.
"If it was my call to make, Muilenburg would've been fired long ago," he said. Since the two accidents, he has faced intense criticism over the corporate culture that existed at Boeing on his watch, and over the company's relationship with regulators.
Dennis Muilenburg's departure was inevitable, though the timing was unexpected. Questions have been asked about how a seemingly flawed aircraft was allowed into service in the first place, and why it was allowed to continue flying after the first accident. There have been claims - emphatically denied by the company - that it prioritised profits and speed of production over safety.
Since the two accidents, he has faced intense criticism over the corporate culture at Boeing and its relationship with regulators. There have been claims - emphatically denied by the company - that it prioritised profits and speed of production over safety. His response to the crisis has also come under fire. Although he insisted that Boeing "owned" its failures, he also repeatedly said that the crashes were the result of a chain of events. This was seen by some as an attempt to divert blame away from the aerospace giant.
Although he insisted, repeatedly, that Boeing "owned" its failures, his attempts to portray the disasters as the results of a chain of events attracted further condemnation. Last week, the company announced it would have to suspend production of the 737 Max, because regulators have yet to clear the aircraft as safe to fly again. The final humiliation came last week, when Boeing announced it would have to suspend production of the 737 Max, because regulators had yet to clear the aircraft as safe to fly again. For months, Mr Muilenburg had insisted the plane would be back in the air by the end of the year.
He had lost credibility, and the board decided he had to go.