As new questions arise about Boeing’s troubled 737 Max jet, FRONTLINE and The New York Times update an award-winning investigation into the design, oversight and production of a plane that was involved in two crashes that killed 346 people.
In October 2018, a Boeing 737 Max passenger jet crashed shortly after takeoff off the coast of Indonesia. Five months later, following an eerily similar flight pattern, another 737 Max 8 went down in Ethiopia. Everyone on board the flights died.
“Boeing’s Fatal Flaw” tells the inside story of what led up to the crashes — revealing how intense market pressure and failed oversight contributed to tragic deaths and a catastrophic crisis for one of the world’s most iconic industrial names.
This updated documentary also examines what’s happened since the original film first aired in 2021, including the January 2024 Alaska Airlines incident where a panel blew off a Boeing 737 Max jet’s body midair, and how Boeing has responded.
CHAPTERS:
00:00 – Prologue
01:05 – Boeing 737 Max Crashes on Indonesian and Ethiopian Airlines
19:20 – The FAA’s Regulatory Oversight of Boeing’s 737 Max
45:27 – Blowout on an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max Plane
51:58 – Credits