Former Boeing Quality Manager John Barnett was found dead in a Charleston, S.C., parking lot on Saturday from a "self-inflicted gunshot wound," according to local police — opening up yet another bizarre chapter in the troubled aircraft maker's recent history.
Barnett had given "stark warnings" about quality control issues on two models of Boeing passenger jets, including substandard parts and using Dawn dishwashing soap as a lubricant. The 62-year-old had also claimed that Boeing executives were hiding the company's safety issues rather than addressing them.
"My concerns are with the 737 and 787 because those programs have really embraced the theory that quality is overhead and non-value-added," Barnett told TMZ after the infamous Jan. 5 incident when a door plug blew off an Alaska Air 737 MAX 9 that depressured the cabin and exposed passengers to open air shortly after takeoff.
Brian Knowles was Barnett's attorney and described in an email to Corporate Crime Reporter what happened in the days leading up to Barnett's death:
John had been back and forth for quite some time getting prepared. The defense examined him for their allowed seven hours under the rules on Thursday. I cross-examined him all day yesterday (Friday) and did not finish. We agreed to continue this morning at 10 a.m. (co-counsel) Rob (Turkewitz) kept calling this morning and his (Barnett’s) phone would go to voicemail. We then asked the hotel to check on him. They found him in his truck dead from an ‘alleged’ self-inflicted gunshot. We drove to the hotel and spoke with the police and the coroner.
If you're thinking the whole thing stinks, we're in agreement.
Meanwhile, a Chilean airline LATAM flight from Australia to New Zealand on Monday experienced a "technical event" in mid-flight that "caused a strong movement," resulting in about 50 people being injured. The passenger jet was a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, one of the two models (the other is the troubled 737 MAX) described in Barnett's whistleblower complaint.
One passenger on board, Brian Jokat, told ABC News, "The ceiling's broken from people's heads and bodies hitting it. Basically neck braces were being put on people, guys' heads were cut and they were bleeding. It was just crazy."
LATAM is investigating the incident, which sent several people to the hospital, mostly with head injuries — although none were even close to life-threatening.
The flight landed as scheduled at Auckland Airport.
Two weeks ago, the FAA said it "will mandate a fix for a new 737 MAX design problem discovered by Boeing that, although it’s a remote possibility, could theoretically disable the jet’s engine anti-ice system." According to the same report, "Airlines have reported a separate issue with a similar system on Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner that has caused what the FAA calls 'relatively minor' damage to the engine inlets on some two dozen of these widebody jets in service."
Boeing has been given three years to address the problem on the MAX and 30 months to get the 787 fixed.
Recommended: How Toxic Is DEI? These Companies Are Turning Down Billions in Free Money to Avoid It
P.S. Help PJ Media get the truth out by becoming one of our VIP or VIP Gold supporters. You need independent news and analysis and we need to keep the lights on. You can join here, and don't forget my 25% off VODKAPUNDIT promo code.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member