Boeing Fires C.E.O. Dennis Muilenburg

On the call, the board members, who were scattered around the country preparing for the holidays, made the unanimous decision to remove Mr. Muilenburg.

Mr. Calhoun, who was in New York, and Larry Kellner, a board member and former airline executive who is Mr. Calhoun’s immediate replacement as chairman, called Mr. Muilenburg to inform him of the decision, according to a person familiar with the situation. The call was brief.

It was a striking turnaround. At a board meeting last week in Chicago, where the Max factory production shutdown was deliberated, there was no talk of removing Mr. Muilenburg, according to two people familiar with the matter. On Friday, a company spokesman said Mr. Calhoun stood by comments he made in November, saying the board supported Mr. Muilenburg.

Mr. Calhoun, 62, who started his career at General Electric and ran G.E.’s airplane-engine business in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, faces a daunting challenge. Before the Max can fly again, regulators must approve Boeing’s fix for an automated system, known as MCAS, that was found to have played a role in both crashes. The company still needs to provide the F.A.A. with all the documents needed to fully describe the software fix.

Boeing is working through technical issues as well. In simulator tests this month, airline pilots did not use the designated procedures during emergencies, instead relying on their own skills to handle problems. That raised new questions about whether regulators will require more extensive training for pilots to fly the plane or whether the procedures need to be changed, according to two people briefed on the matter.

The development of the Max, an updated version of Boeing’s popular 737 jet, was begun under competitive pressure in 2011 as the company sought to fend off competition from its European rival, Airbus. The two crashes have prompted investigations by prosecutors, regulators and two congressional committees into whether Boeing overlooked safety risks and played down the need for pilot training in its effort to design, produce and certify the plane as quickly as possible.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/23/business/Boeing-ceo-muilenburg.html?emc=rss&partner=rss