Boeing can be ‘much better’, new CEO David Calhoun tells employees

Boeing Co’s new chief executive, David Calhoun, assumed the job on Monday as the US planemaker battles to recover from two fatal crashes of 737 MAX planes that killed 346 people in five months and led to the model’s worldwide grounding in March.

Calhoun, 62, a longtime Boeing director named chairman in October after the board stripped Dennis Muilenburg of the title, was named chief executive on Dec. 23, following the firing of Muilenburg amid growing concerns about the company’s relationship with regulators and its handling of the MAX.

Boeing has estimated costs of the MAX grounding at more than $9 billion to date and is expected to disclose significant additional costs during its fourth-quarter earnings release on Jan. 29. Boeing faces rising costs from halting production of the MAX this month, compensating airlines for lost flights and assisting its supply chain.