The U.S. Department of Justice imposed a fine of $243.6 million. $1.77 billion will go to the bereaved families and relatives of the 346 passengers who died in the Boeing 737 MAX crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. $500 million will go to a compensation foundation. One of the main reasons: a lack of transparency regarding software defects that were already known at the time but would have hindered market success.

The aircraft manufacturer reached an agreement with the Department of Justice to settle criminal charges alleging deception against the Aircraft Evaluation Group, a division of the renowned Federal Aviation Administration . about significant deficiencies in the functionality of the flight stabilization system and its associated software . The Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) was prevent critical situations by reducing the angle of attack . The forward-positioned engine casings of the MAX versions generated so much lift at higher angles of attack that further maneuvers increased the likelihood of the corrective measures being amplified and an engine stall.

Fig.: US Department of Justice

Assistant Attorney General David P. Burns of the Department of Justice's Criminal Division identified " fraudulent and deceptive conduct by employees " Boeing employees chose the path of profit over transparency by withholding material information about the operation of their 737 Max airplane from the FAA and by striving to conceal their deception. This resolution (...) hopefully provides some redress for the families and survivors of the accident victims."

"The misleading statements, half-truths, and omissions that Boeing employees provided to the FAA compromised the government's ability to ensure the safety of the flying public," said U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox in the Northern District of Texas. "This case sends a clear message: The Department of Justice will hold manufacturers like Boeing accountable for defrauding regulators—especially in industries where the stakes are so high."

"Today's deferred prosecution agreement holds Boeing and its employees accountable for their lack of transparency with the FAA regarding MCAS," said Special Agent Emmerson Buie Jr. of the FBI's Chicago Field Office. "The significant penalties and restitution Boeing will pay demonstrate the consequences."

Photos: Boeing

As Boeing admitted in court documents, Boeing, through two of its 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots, misled the FAA AEG about important details of the MCAS that affected the Boeing 737 MAX's flight control system . As a result , critical information on the was missing from aircraft manuals and training materials for U.S.-based airlines .

In November 2016, two of Boeing's 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots, one who was then the 737 MAX Chief Technical Pilot and one who would later become the 737 MAX Chief Technical Pilot, discovered information about a key change to MCAS . FAA , withheld this information from the FAA. On October 29, 2018, Lion Air Flight 610, a Boeing 737 MAX, crashed into the Java Sea near Indonesia shortly after takeoff. Following the Lion Air crash, the FAA learned that MCAS had been and may play a role in the crash . The FAA AEG also learned for the first time about the transition to MCAS, including information about MCAS that Boeing had hidden from the FAA AEG. As the investigation into the Lion Air crash continued, the two 737 MAX Flight Technical Pilots misled authorities about their prior knowledge of the MCAS changeover .

On March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 MAX, crashed shortly after takeoff near Ejere, Ethiopia. On March 13, 2019, all 737 MAX flights in the United States were grounded.

 Here are the original documents from the US Department of Justice

www.justice.gov