When Boeing learned that American Airlines might choose Airbus over their planes, it triggered a corporate race that would ultimately kill 346 people. Join Alice and Zach as they explore how Boeing's rushed development of the 737 MAX led to fatal design shortcuts, including a hidden software system called MCAS that pilots were never told about. Discover the corporate culture that prioritized speed over safety, the engine placement problem that started it all, and the tragic crash of Lion Air Flight 610—the first warning of a deadly flaw that Boeing chose to downplay rather than fix.

Sources:

U.S. Department of Justice Documents:

• "DOJ confirms it has a deal with Boeing to drop prosecution over deadly 737 Max crashes" - NPR, May 23, 2025
• "Boeing Reaches Deal with DOJ to Avoid Criminal Prosecution in 737 MAX Case" - Aviation Source News
• "Families of 737 MAX crash victims to object to deal allowing Boeing to avoid prosecution" - Reuters

Crash Investigation Reports:

• "Aircraft Accident Investigation Report. PT. Lion Airlines Boeing 737 (MAX); PK-LQP" - Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee, October 25, 201
• "Aircraft Accident Investigation Report B737-MAX 8, ET-AVJ" - Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority, December 23, 2022
• "Indonesia report finds fatal Lion Air jet crash due to Boeing, pilots, maintenance" - NBC News

Academic and Legal Analysis:

• "Boeing's 737 MAX 8 Disasters" - MIT Sloan case study by John Sterman and James Quinn, May 2, 2023
• "Lion Air Flight JT 610 Crash" - Wisner Baum law firm case analysis
• Wikipedia entries on Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302

News Coverage:

• "5 Years On: Looking Back At The Crash Of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302" - Simple Flying, March 10, 2024

Find FINAL BOARDING CALL online:

• Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com
• Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod
• Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Credits:

Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.