The family of a deceased Boeing whistleblower has filed a lawsuit against the company.
The whistleblower, John Barnett, was found dead inside his vehicle from what were described as self-inflicted injuries in March 2024. Barnett, who worked for Boeing for 32 years, came forward with concerns regarding oxygen masks and other matters before his death.
Barnett was subject to a “campaign of harassment, abuse and intimidation intended to discourage, discredit and humiliate him until he would either give up or be discredited,” the lawsuit says.
“Boeing had threatened to break John, and break him it did,” the attorneys wrote.
“Whether or not Boeing intended to drive John to his death or merely destroy his ability to function, it was absolutely foreseeable that PTSD and John’s unbearable depression, panic attacks, and anxiety, which would in turn lead to an elevated risk of suicide,” the lawsuit said. “Boeing may not have pulled the trigger, but Boeing’s conduct was the clear cause, and the clear foreseeable cause, of John’s death.”
Numerous whistleblowers came forward with safety concerns following Barnett’s passing.
Sam Salehpour, a Boeing engineer, said there were production “shortcuts” that could cause problems mid-flight. “It can cause a catastrophic failure,” he asserted.
Another whistleblower, Ed Pierson, is a former senior manager who went on to create the Foundation for Aviation Safety.
“It’s an unstable company right now from the top to the bottom,” Pierson told The New York Post last year. “Senior corporate leadership is so fixated on not admitting the truth that they can’t admit anything.”
“Boeing is an American icon,” he said. “This company is incredibly important to our country, both economically and in terms of national security with its commercial aviation side and its military defense work. But it doesn’t work when you have the wrong people driving the bus.”
