Boeing whistleblower John Barnett, who raised alarm over plane quality, was found shot through the head, on Saturday, in his car in a hotel parking lot, the day after giving his testimony
Barnett, who spent decades working for Boeing at its plants in Everett, Washington state, and North Charleston, S.C., had repeatedly alleged that Boeing’s manufacturing practices had declined — and that rather than improve them, he added, managers had pressured workers not to document potential defects and problems.
Barnett filed a whistleblower complaint against Boeing in early 2017; his case against the company was heading toward a trial this June, his family said.
Barnett, 62, made international headlines in April of 2019 when he and other former Boeing employees spoke to The New York Times about what he called shoddy manufacturing problems at Boeing. Barnett accused the company of adopting a culture that prioritized raw numbers and profits over quality — and by extension, passenger safety.
“As a quality manager at Boeing, you’re the last line of defense before a defect makes it out to the flying public,” Barnett told the newspaper. “And I haven’t seen a plane out of Charleston yet that I’d put my name on saying it’s safe and airworthy.”
https://www.npr.org/2024/03/12/1238033573/boeing-whistleblower-john-barnett-dead
from USA Today
Social media is littered with posts from travelers who say they want to avoid Boeing 737 Max jets in their future travels.
Travel booking company Kayak even included filters on its flight search page that allow passengers to exclude itineraries with certain aircraft types.
But for most travelers, it may be tough to decode what kind of plane is operating their flight because, ultimately, airlines – not passengers – are Boeing’s customers. Travelers may not have much say over what kind of plane they’re boarding once they’ve decided to fly somewhere.
See also the earlier posts about Boeing.