YIKES

Report: DOJ Subpoenas Records for Boeing 787 Dreamliner Model, on Top of 737 Max Probe

The subpoenas are believed to have come from the same prosecutors involved in the 727 Max probe.

The Justice Department has reportedly subpoenaed Boeing for records relating to the production of their 787 Dreamliner, on top of an ongoing criminal probe into the 737 Max—which has been subject to scrutiny after two fatal plane crashes in recent months. One source told The Seattle Times that a “handful of subpoenas” were issued earlier this month to employees in the 787 Dreamliner plant in South Carolina, which came from the “same group” of prosecutors involved in the 737 Max probe. The Department of Transportation and the FBI are reportedly working with the DOJ on the probe, which was launched in response to allegations that the production plant was producing “shoddy” work. A Boeing spokesman told the newspaper they do not “comment on legal matters.”

According to a report from Bloomberg, the problems of the 737 Max may have stemmed from outsourcing to cheaper engineers and laying off more experienced ones. A former Boeing engineer told Bloomberg that software on the Max was developed when the company was attempting to cut costs—which included hiring engineers from an Indian software developer who were believed to have been paid around $9 to $10 an hour.