The Fifth Estate
How Boeing crashed: The inside story of the 737 Max
S45 • E21 Jan 19, 2020 30m
Boeing used to represent the gold standard in aircraft safety, but critics say it has lost its way in the pursuit of profit. We tell the story of two fatal crashes involving the 737 Max 8 jet: the Ethiopian Airlines crash last March that killed 157 people and the Lion Air disaster in October 2018 that killed all 189 on board. We explore why experts say those disasters were preventable. The story is told by pilots, legislators, Boeing insiders and the families of the people killed. But the biggest revelations come from Boeing itself, through internal messages and emails showing Boeing officials knew about the potential for a catastrophe well before the two crashes occurred.