Boeing is working hard to hopefully "re-earn" the trust of people following the two crashes in October and March. CEO Dennis Muilenburg revealed on Monday that nearly 500 test flights for the 737 Max jets were completed.
According to CNBC, Muilenburg said while attending the Global Business Travel Association event on Monday that he personally flew two 737 Max planes that featured new software. He added that employees with the company are looking forward to doing the same.
It is worth noting that Muilenburg's comments amid speculations that the highly contested jets are expected to get recertification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) sometime between this month and September.
However, some industry experts previously warned that the grounded 737 Max planes may stay on the ground until early next year, prompting some airlines to remove the jets on their schedules until 2020.
On the other hand, Muilenburg appears to be confident of the tests completed this time. "We know that trust has been damaged over the last few months, and we own that and we are working hard to re-earn that trust going forward," he said.
At this point, Muilenburg revealed that the American jet maker is focused on patching up the software that is believed to be the root cause of the two accidents that took 346 lives in total.
On Monday, Boeing shares dropped to 2.5 percent at almost seven months of being on the low. The company also posted its worst quarterly loss yet in Q2 2019 at $2.9 billion, making investors shake heads.
Meanwhile, David R. Beatty's op-ed for The Globe and Mail on Sunday made a reasonable point that has led some analysts to question why the board of Boeing has not yet moved to reshuffle its leadership.
Beatty, who is a founder of Canada's Directors Education Program, noted in his write-up that usually when catastrophes strike the first time, the board of directors asks the CEO to step down. However, two crises have come and gone yet Muilenburg has retained his post.
For Beatty, the story of Boeing and the 737 Max jets "provide a cautionary tale" regarding the need "for directors to take a much more active approach to their responsibilities to the organization - and to society."
Beatty's sentiments echo that of the families of the two crashes' victims. Earlier last month, Business Insider reported that Paul Njoroge, whose wife and three kids, as well as his mother-in-law, passed away in the Ethiopian Airlines crash in March, said Boeing's promise to help victims' families may be just for PR work.
Others said they haven't received details about how Boeing's promised $100 million funds to help the families survive will be distributed. It remains to be seen when the 737 Max will be recertified for flying.
