Boeing trial begins in Seattle over claims it hid 737 MAX safety concerns
May 11, 2026, 7:05 PM
Test pilots prepare a Boeing 737 MAX 9 conducts its first flight from Renton Municipal Airport. (Photo: Stephen Brashear, Getty Images)
(Photo: Stephen Brashear, Getty Images)
LOT Polish Airlines has become the first airline to take Boeing to trial over the 737 MAX crashes, with proceedings starting Monday in Seattle.
LOT Polish Airlines’ attorney argued Boeing hid safety concerns regarding its 737 MAX jet when LOT Polish Airlines chose the aircraft in 2016, Reuters reported.
LOT Polish Airlines said it suffered significant revenue losses when regulators grounded the 737 MAX worldwide in 2019 following two deadly crashes, which killed 346 people. The airline sued Boeing in 2021 for financial damages.
“This case is about Boeing’s lies and deception and the devastating financial harm it caused,” LOT Polish Airlines’ attorney said during opening statements, according to Reuters.
The media outlet explained that while Boeing was trying to strike a deal with LOT Polish Airlines, Boeing engineers were trying to fix a flaw with the jet’s nose.
Boeing developed the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) to address a problem with the jet’s nose pitching up, but according to Reuters, the company misled the FAA about the system’s capabilities. The media outlet said Boeing did not want regulators to require additional pilot training, which would have made the MAX jets more expensive for customers.
Boeing’s attorney pushed back, accusing LOT of “crying foul and fraud out of one side of their mouth in the courtroom” while still flying the 737 MAX, Reuters reported.
The company previously told the media outlet it had already paid billions to the families of victims of the crashes.
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