Boeing's Safety Culture Under Scrutiny After Devastating Plane Crashes

A new documentary titled 'Freefall' sheds light on Boeing's internal culture and its impact on safety protocols. The film, directed by Rory Kennedy, explores how a company renowned for its attention to safety allowed rot in its internal culture.

The investigation into the 2025 Air India flight AI 171 crash, which killed 242 people on board and 19 on the ground, is still ongoing. The documentary does not focus on explaining the crash itself but rather on asking the larger question of how Boeing's internal culture contributed to such a disaster.

Whistleblowers in the film reveal that defective components were reused, including a scene where an employee uses a sledgehammer to push a pin into the landing gear of an airplane. The documentary also features footage from the Alaska Airlines door-plug blowout incident, which occurred at 16,000 feet.