Boeing CEO set to leave crisis-hit company with up to $45.5 million after wave of safety incidents

Boeing’s CEO will walk away from his post in the midst of pressing safety concerns, collecting up to $45.5 million should shares in the crisis-hit company increase.

Dave Calhoun is preparing to retire after four years at his post, amid the crisis which saw the aeroplane maker’s reputation plunge amongst customers. Mr Calhoun has made around $63 million over the past three years, including a $1.4 million base salary, plus millions in stock-based incentives, according to regulatory filings , with the amount he will receive on leaving his post to be published in coming weeks.

Boeing’s most recent proxy statement suggests Mr Calhoun will leave his job with $15 million worth of stock and cash. However, his parting sum will depend on how the company’s share prices perform. Fortune estimated the magnate could walk away with $24 million, potentially collecting $45.5 million more if Boeing’s stock increases by 37 per cent.

Calhoun will be stepping down at the end of the year from the top job at the company

It comes after an incident with Alaska Airlines in January where a door blew off mid-flight, Boeing faced a criminal investigation. The government demanded all Boeing 737 Max 8s to be grounded and inspected before they could fly again.

In early March, a Boeing whistleblower was discovered dead in his workplace parking lot after giving damning testimony against the company. Calhoun has led the company for four years, taking over from his predecessor Dennis Muilenberg who had to resign due to a similar scandal,

Mr Calhoun wrote a note to staff, saying: “It has been the greatest privilege of my life to serve Boeing. The eyes of the world are on us, and I know that we will come through this moment a better company.”

A Boeing 777-200 took off and the wheel dislodged seconds later at LAX airport

He added: “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.”

Mr Calhoun is not the first to lead Boeing through a chequered path, Dennis Muilenburg, his predecessor was fired over his mishandling of Boeing’s response to two crashes that killed 346 people, and he managed to walk waway with $80 million.

National Transportation Safety Board shows a gaping hole where the paneled-over door had been at the fuselage plug area of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282

The CEO of Ryanair said “Boeing management is running around like headless chickens,” in 2022, adding that its executives needed an immediate “reboot, or a boot up the a**.” The head of aircraft leasing company Avalon said Boeing had “lost its way” and might need “fresh leadership.”

Under Mr Calhoun’s rule the company laid off around 16,000 employees in during the pandemic. This summer, more than 30,000 Seattle-area mechanics are set to vote for a strike that could mean they stop work when their contract expires in September.

Boeing’s robust board and business model allowed Mr Calhoun to stay on as CEO as it was unlikely Boeing would lose customers or go bankrupt.