Boeing's Safety Culture Under Scrutiny in New Documentary

Rory Kennedy's new documentary, Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing, delves into the case of John Barnett, a quality manager at Boeing's North Charleston plant who spent 32 years documenting safety concerns. Barnett's allegations included defective parts being pulled from scrap bins and fitted to aircraft, as well as safety paperwork being cleared to protect the schedule.

Barnett was in the middle of a deposition in his own case against the company when he died suddenly. The documentary uses Barnett's testimony, combined with internal factory footage and recorded phone calls, to build a picture of a culture that prioritizes production over safety.

Kennedy's film is not about assigning blame or pointing fingers, but rather about examining the systemic issues within Boeing that allowed these problems to persist. The documentary shows how workers were pressured to keep the line moving and sign off on jobs they had flagged as defective.

The film also explores the aftermath of the 737 MAX crashes and the reforms that followed, arguing that while some procedural changes were made, the underlying incentives remained in place. This is a quieter, more nuanced documentary than its predecessor, Downfall: The Case Against Boeing, which focused on the shocking story of the two crashes.