Another Boeing whistleblower has died

Two months ago, Boeing whistleblower John Barnett (62) was found dead with a gunshot wound in his own car. Now another whistleblower has also died, the New York Post reports.

Joshua Dean (45), like John Barnett, has publicly expressed concerns about the airline’s security routines. Dean has worked in quality assurance for Spirit AeroSystems, one of Boeing’s suppliers. Barnett worked for Boeing for over 30 years before retiring.

Now Joshua Dean has been confirmed dead after suddenly falling ill with a “mysterious infection”, according to the New York Post. Just two weeks ago, the 45-year-old should have been healthy and in good shape, the newspaper writes.

On 21 April he was in a “critical condition” and tested positive for Influenza B, MRSA and pneumonia. A CT scan should have shown that he had suffered a stroke.

Shortly before he died, doctors considered amputating both his arms and legs because they had turned black from infection, much to the astonishment of both the doctors and his family.

“He is in the worst condition I have ever seen or heard of. Even the hospital agrees,” his sister-in-law, Kristen Dean, wrote on Facebook Saturday.

Dean reported defects in 2022 while working as a quality auditor at Spirit Aerosystems, a Kansas-based company that manufactures aircraft parts for Boeing. Less than a year later, he was fired.

To the American state channel NPR, the 45-year-old said that he experienced the firing as a signal to other employees that those who speak will be silenced.

The quality auditor raised concerns about errors in the drilling of bulkhead holes on parts for Boeing 373 Max planes, according to the Seattle Times. He felt that telling the management had no effect.

In January, the door hatch of a Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft flew off during an Alaska Airlines flight. In the same month, iNyheter wrote that both Alaska Airlines and United Airlines have found “loose parts” on several of their Boeing 737 Max 9 planes.

“It’s well known among Spirit employees that if you make too much noise and cause too much trouble, there will be consequences,” Dean told the Wall Street Journal earlier this year.