Calhoun is leaving at the end of the year
Boeing announces change in boss in installments
March 25, 2024, 2:32 p.m
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Massive quality control problems have recently brought aircraft manufacturer Boeing into disrepute. Now the US company is drawing conclusions – but not immediately: Boss Calhoun is clearing the way for a new beginning at the top of the group at the turn of the year.
The troubled aircraft manufacturer Boeing is initiating a change in management a few weeks after a near-miss. CEO Dave Calhoun will be giving up his position at the end of the year, the competitor of the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus said. Chairman of the Board of Directors Larry Kellner and the head of the commercial aircraft division, Stan Deal, are also leaving.
The company has not yet named a successor for Calhoun. Deal will be replaced by Stephanie Pope, who recently took over responsibility for operations. Kellner, a former Continental Airlines executive, has been on Boeing’s board for about 13 years. He will be replaced as chairman by former Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf, who has served on the board since 2020.
Calhoun has come under pressure over numerous quality control problems with Boeing commercial aircraft. “The eyes of the world are on us, and I know we will emerge from this moment a better company,” said Calhoun, who became CEO of Boeing in January 2020. “We will remain fully focused on the work we have done together to rehabilitate our business after the extraordinary challenges of the last five years, putting safety and quality at the forefront of everything we do. ”
Boeing has been under pressure from investors and airlines to come up with a plan to fix the company’s quality problems since the Jan. 5 incident on an Alaska Airlines flight. A group of airline CEOs recently requested a meeting with Boeing’s board, an unusual move that shows their dissatisfaction with the company and with Calhoun.
Calhoun actually wanted to do better than his predecessor. Instead, he is the second Boeing boss to resign due to quality and production problems. Calhoun – who was tasked with turning Boeing around after two deadly 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 – has spent the last few months trying to convince investors, regulators and airlines that the company is still is capable of building a quality aircraft.
Boeing and its supply chain have been plagued by mishaps – from incorrectly drilled holes in 737 fuselages to production mishaps on the 787 Dreamliner to mishaps with the new Air Force One. However, none of these problems led to any incidents in the air.