Boeing awarded $212 million DOD contract for Navy jet repairs despite scrutiny over company safety record
Aerospace manufacturing giant Boeing Co. has been awarded a $212 million Department of Defense contract to make repairs to military fighter jets, the agency said Tuesday.
The work calls for Boeing in St. Louis, Missouri to repair various configurations of flight control surfaces on 11 Navy F/A-18 E/F and EA-18G aircraft models.
Some of the work will be done in St. Louis but the majority of the repairs will be made in Jacksonville, Florida. The work is expected to be completed by December 2028, the DOD said. The million-dollar contract comes as the aircraft manufacturer is being heavily scrutinized over safety concerns and a perceived lack of oversight.
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"Boeing enjoys billions of taxpayer dollars every year, and thousands of Americans rely on Boeing aircrafts to get from Point A to B every day," Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, recently told Fox News Digital. "By cutting corners or turning a blind eye to glaring problems, Boeing puts passengers’ safety at serious risk."
Grassley announced a probe into Boeing amid a series of aircraft disasters involving its planes. In January, Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, a Boeing 737 Max craft, lost a door panel at 16,000 feet. The incident was recorded and quickly went viral on social media.
In addition, John Barnett, a Boeing whistleblower who claimed that a company plant in South Carolina was using substandard parts and lost track of defective components, recently took his own life. His death in March was ruled a suicide.
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It came as Barnett was in the middle of depositions as part of his retaliation lawsuit against Boeing, and his lawyers argued that the company was responsible for his death. At least a dozen Boeing whistleblowers have come forward citing concerns over the company's quality assurance and culture since the Alaskan Airlines incident.
The plane manufacturer is currently under investigation by multiple federal agencies.
Outgoing Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun testified before Senate lawmakers on Tuesday but addressed the loved ones of passengers who were killed in crashes involving the aerospace manufacturer's planes.
Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia, in October 2018, and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed in Ethiopia minutes after take off in March 2019. Both flights involved the Boeing 737 Max 8 plane, and resulted in 346 deaths between the two crashes.
"I want to personally apologize, on behalf of everyone at Boeing," Calhoun told the victims' loved ones, who were holding signs with pictures of the victims' faces. "We are deeply sorry for your losses. Nothing is more important than the safety of the people who step on board our airplanes. Every day we seek to honor the memory of those lost through a steadfast commitment to safety and quality."
Fox News Digital has reached out to Boeing, the DOD and the White House.
Fox News Digital's Michael Ruiz and FOX Business' Breck Dumas contributed to this report.