Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun announced Monday that he will step down as CEO at the end of 2024.
The embattled company had faced intense scrutiny since two of its aircraft crashed, killing hundreds of people in late 2018 and 2019.
But the pressure ratcheted up recently after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered an audit of assembly lines at a Boeing factory near Seattle in the wake of an Alaska Airlines 737 Max suffering a midair door-panel blowout on Jan. 5.
In a letter to employees, Calhoun referenced the Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 accident, calling it a "watershed moment for Boeing."
The company also announced on Monday that Board Chair Larry Kellner doesn't plan to stand for re-election and Stan Deal, president and CEO of its commercial airplanes unit, will retire. Stephanie Pope will replace him.
"As we begin this period of transition, I want to assure you, we will remain squarely focused on completing the work we have done together to return our company to stability after the extraordinary challenges of the past five years, with safety and quality at the forefront of everything that we do," Calhoun said.
Developing a brand-new aircraft to replace the 737 was something Boeing contemplated over a decade ago. However, to avoid falling behind European competitor Airbus in sales, Boeing opted for the easier route of making minor adjustments to the 737, giving birth to the Max series.
In 2018, a Lion Air Max 8 plane went down in Indonesia, and in 2019, an Ethiopian Airlines Max 8 also crashed. As Boeing modified an automatic flight control system linked to the disasters, regulators globally grounded the jets for over two years.
