A worker next to a Boeing 737 Max 9 airplane on the tarmac at the Boeing factory in Renton, Wash. in October, U.S. officials began probing the Federal Aviation Administration’s approval of a software system linked to the accident and why Boeing Co. didn’t flag the feature in pilot manuals, according to people familiar with the matter.
“If I were a prosecutor, I would be looking at mail and wire fraud,” said Gene Rossi, who spent three decades trying civil and criminal cases for the U.S. Justice Department. He said investigators are likely to examine whether documents related to the 737 Max exchanged between the FAA and the company contained any falsehoods, and whether Boeing executives made any false statements to regulators.
Another facet of the probe has explored why pilots were widely unaware of the system, said another person. The MCAS feature was added to the Max to guard against the threat of stalls in certain circumstances.
Probably because, and I'm going out on a limb but hear me out, capitalism.