US Judge Dismisses Boeing Criminal Charges in $1.1 Billion Settlement Over Fatal 737 MAX Crashes

The agreement effectively cancels a criminal trial that was previously scheduled for June in Texas.

A United States judge has dismissed criminal charges against Boeing on Thursday regarding the fatal crashes of its 737 MAX 8 aircraft as part of an arrangement between the company and prosecutors.

The decision by the Texas judge stems from an agreement reached between the Department of Justice and the aircraft manufacturer to resolve the matter, announced on May 23, following crashes that resulted in 346 fatalities.

Under the terms of the deal, Boeing will pay $1.1 billion in exchange for the dismissal of a criminal charge related to its conduct during the certification of the MAX, according to a federal filing.

This agreement eliminates the need for a criminal trial that had been scheduled for June in Fort Worth, Texas.

The settlement resolves the case without requiring Boeing to enter a guilty plea to fraud in the certification of the MAX, which was involved in two catastrophic crashes in 2018 and 2019.

Boeing has expressed being "deeply sorry" for the crashes of an Ethiopian Airlines flight that killed 157 people, and a Lion Air crash in Indonesia that claimed 189 lives.

The company has attributed the crashes to the design of the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), a flight handling system that malfunctioned.

"We are committed to honoring the obligations of our agreement with the Department of Justice. We are also committed to continuing the significant efforts we have made as a company to strengthen our safety, quality, and compliance programs," Boeing stated on Thursday.

When the outline of the deal was announced in May, family members of some MAX victims criticized the proposed settlement as being too lenient toward Boeing.

"The message sent by this action to companies around the country is, don't worry about making your products safe for your customers," said Javier de Luis in a statement previously released by attorneys for plaintiffs suing Boeing.

Other family members expressed a desire for closure, with the DoJ quoting one family member who said "the grief resurfaces every time this case is discussed in court or other forums."

Thursday's announcement represents the latest development in a prolonged case that emerged following the two crashes that damaged Boeing's reputation and contributed to leadership changes at the aviation giant.

The case dates back to a January 2021 DOJ agreement with Boeing that settled charges that the company knowingly defrauded the Federal Aviation Administration during the MAX certification.

The 2021 accord included a three-year probation period. However, in May 2024, the DOJ determined that Boeing had violated the 2021 agreement following several subsequent safety lapses.

Boeing agreed in July 2024 to plead guilty to "conspiracy to defraud the United States."

However, in December, federal judge Reed O'Connor rejected a settlement that would have codified the guilty plea.