Aircraft maker Boeing violated the terms of a U.S. agreement that previously shielded the company from prosecution following two passenger plane crashes, the U.S. Department of Justice said.
Court documents filed Tuesday say Boeing did not implement a program to prevent violations of U.S. fraud laws as agreed. The government says it has not yet decided how to proceed with this issue.
Boeing had until June 13 to receive an official response. In its initial response on Tuesday, the company stressed that its own assessment shows it is in compliance with the agreement.
Two Boeing 737 MAX planes crashed in October 2018 and March 2019, killing 346 people. Investigators say software that was supposed to support the pilots but interfered with the controls more than expected was behind both crashes.
Boeing was criticized after the aircraft manufacturer declared that no special training on the software was required when the aircraft model was certified by U.S. authorities.
Pursuant to an agreement with the U.S. government, Boeing paid a $243 million fine. In return, allegations of fraud related to the information provided to U.S. authorities were not pursued further.
However, Boeing was required to implement a compliance and ethics program. The Department of Justice has now emphasized that the company could be subject to criminal prosecution again if it violates this law.
After two crashes, the 737 MAX had to be grounded for months while Boeing made improvements.
This year, the company once again came to the attention of authorities in January when part of the fuselage was blown into the air from a nearly new Boeing 737-9 Max operated by US airline Alaska Airlines.
No one was seriously injured in the incident.
The U.S. government subsequently launched an investigation, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) required Boeing to submit a plan to improve quality control. The FAA also blocked Boeing's plans to expand 737 MAX production until further notice.