Spotlight On Whistleblower's Boeing Safety Claims After Air India Crash

An Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner flying from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick crashed shortly after takeoff on Thursday, killing 241 of 242 people on board. It was the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 787 since the aircraft entered service in 2009.

The crash has turned the spotlight back on long-standing concerns about Boeing's manufacturing practices. It brings a renewed focus on John Barnett, a former quality manager and Boeing whistleblower who flagged safety lapses in the Dreamliner programme before his mysterious death last year.

Who Was John Barnett?

John Barnett was born on February 23, 1962, in California. After his parents' separation, he moved to Louisiana, with his mother and three older brothers. A graduate of Bolton High School, Mr Barnett started his career as a cab driver before joining the US Air Force. When training opportunities fell through, he switched paths and joined Rockwell International in Palmdale, California, where he worked on parts for NASA's Space Shuttle programme, including the Atlantis orbiter.

In the 1980s, Mr Barnett also worked as an electrician on the B-1 Lancer bomber. He later settled on Camano Island, Washington, and joined Boeing in 1988 as a quality inspector. He rose through the ranks and, by 2010, was working at Boeing's South Carolina plant in North Charleston, the assembly line for the 787 Dreamliner.

What John Barnett Said About Boeing

At the North Charleston plant between 2010 and 2017, Mr Barnett raised red flags about what he described as a steady decline in safety protocols. According to him, employees were being pressured to overlook defects and meet production quotas.

John Barnett raised serious concerns about how Boeing was building its planes. He said that tiny metal shavings were left near important wires, which could cause dangerous problems mid-flight. He also claimed that about one in four oxygen masks might not work in an emergency. He also said some parts were missing or not properly recorded during the building process, showing poor safety checks.

In 2017, he filed formal complaints with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The FAA did confirm certain issues he highlighted and instructed Boeing to fix them. OSHA later dismissed his claims, ruling in favour of Boeing in 2021, a decision Mr Barnett appealed.

He continued to allege that Boeing retaliated against him, blocking promotions, isolating him from teams, and creating a hostile work environment. After facing health challenges, John Barnett retired in 2017.

In 2019, John Barnett went public with his allegations in media interviews. He was later featured in the 2022 Netflix documentary 'Downfall: The Case Against Boeing', which examined the company's safety culture, particularly after the 737 MAX disasters.

Even after retirement, Mr Barnett continued to speak out. Following the Alaska Airlines door plug blowout incident in early 2024, he again raised concerns about ongoing quality control failures at Boeing.

How Did John Barnett Die?

On March 9, 2024, John Barnett was found dead in his pickup truck outside a hotel in Charleston, South Carolina. He had been staying there while preparing to testify in his whistleblower retaliation case against Boeing.

When he failed to appear for a scheduled deposition, police conducted a welfare check and found him with a gunshot wound to the head. A handgun was in his right hand, and forensic evidence confirmed it was a suicide, according to authorities.

A handwritten note was discovered in the vehicle, which said, "I can't do this any longer. F**k Boeing. I pray Boeing pays."