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Boeing CEO That Has Presided Over Massive Failures Awarded $32 Million Pay Package Before He Departs

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Boeing’s CEO could walk away with a massive pay package as his company scrambles to regain public trust amid a series of high-profile incidents with their aircraft.

Dave Calhoun, Boeing’s outgoing president and CEO, could be awarded $32.8 million in total compensation by the company in 2023, a marked increase from prior years, if shareholders approve his pay package, according to a regulatory filing submitted on Friday. Calhoun’s pay package comes amid a string of high-profile mechanical failures on Boeing’s aircraft and concerns that an outsized focus on diversity could be harming the company.

Much of Calhoun’s pay package, about $30.2 million worth, comes in the form of stock awards, according to the filing. Year-to-date as of April 6, Boeing’s stock has lost about 30% of its value. 

“From his first day as CEO, and in each day on the job since, Mr. Calhoun’s primary focus has been on strengthening the Company’s product safety and quality systems,” the filing states.

In January, the emergency door of a Boeing MAX 9 plane blew off mid flight, forcing an emergency landing. A National Transportation Safety Board(NTSB) report released in February found that the door had no bolts installed.

Though the incident in January “shows that Boeing has much work yet to do, the board believes that Mr. Calhoun has responded to this event in the right way by taking responsibility for the accident,” the company said, according to The Financial Times.

Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 makes emergency landing after exit door separates in flight. pic.twitter.com/xj6AXmhwre

— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) January 6, 2024

The January incident is not the only mechanical failure recently reported on Boeing’s aircraft. Multiple Boeing planes were forced to land early in March due to mechanical issues, seven passengers on a Boeing plane were injured after it encountered turbulence and Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s plane, a Boeing model, has suffered two critical malfunctions in 2024.

An anonymous insider at Boeing said during an interview that the company’s focus on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), as well as disconnected leadership, were to blame for the corporation’s ongoing troubles. Safety issues were the result of DEI-influenced hiring policies at the company producing quality control, according to the insider.

Boeing did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.