Boeing Co is replacing the head of its commercial-airplanes division as it struggles with a crisis created by two deadly crashes of its newest airliner.
Boeing on Tuesday said that Kevin McAllister is out as chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. He is being replaced by Stanley Deal, leader of Boeing’s services division.
The shake-up in Boeing’s top ranks comes just days after the release of internal communications that showed a senior test pilot experienced serious problems while testing flight-control software for the 737 MAX on a simulator.
Photo: Reuters
That software, called the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), is at the center of investigations into two crashes that killed 346 people and led to grounding of the MAX.
Boeing is taking much longer than executives expected to change the software and get the plane flying again.
The company announced two other promotions, including a replacement for Deal, who has led Boeing Global Services since the division was created in 2016.
McAllister was recruited from General Electric Co’s jet-engine operation to run Boeing’s biggest division in 2016, just months before the 737 MAX went into service.
Boeing did not specify whether he quit or was fired.
“The Boeing board fully supports these leadership moves,” chairman David Calhoun said in a prepared statement.
Calhoun himself is new in his position.
Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg also served as company chairman until the board stripped him of that job and elevated Calhoun two weeks ago.
Boeing took a US$5.6 billion pretax charge this summer to cover its estimate for compensating airlines that have canceled thousands of flights because of grounded planes.
It has disclosed nearly US$3 billion in other additional costs related to the grounding.
The company faces dozens of lawsuits by families of passengers killed in the MAX crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. It is also the subject of investigations by the US Department of Justice and Congress.
S&P Global Ratings on Tuesday downgraded the outlook for Boeing, citing concerns the aerospace giant may have misled regulators about the 737 MAX.
The ratings firm kept the debt grade stable at “A,” but cut the outlook to negative from stable on the potential for “lasting damage” to the company’s finances.
“The outlook revision reflects concerns that recent reports that Boeing may have misled the [US] FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] about the problems with the 737 MAX MCAS software that likely caused two accidents could have wide-ranging effects on the company’s competitive and financial positions,” S&P said in a statement.
Additional reporting by AFP
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS