The U.S. State Department announced Thursday (Feb. 29) that Boeing has agreed to pay a $51 million fine after foreign employees and contractors in China, among elsewhere, improperly download files related to military aircraft like the F-22 fighter jet, the Apache attack helicopter, and Air Force One.
“The settlement demonstrates the Department’s role in furthering the national security and foreign policy of the United States by controlling the export of defense articles,” the State Department said in a statement. “The settlement also highlights the importance of exporting defense articles only pursuant to appropriate authorization from the Department.”
It’s like an episode of The Americans or something. You know, the second-season arc where Elizabeth and Phillip Jennings make their ways into a Navy facility to clandestinely snap pictures of submarine propeller fans. Except maybe a little less thrilling. Boeing self-disclosed the problematic downloads, and the State Department notes that the company took “immediate corrective action” in each case.
Among the planes affected…
According to a proposed charging document related to the settlement, these was some of the improper activities that the State Department addressed with Boeing.
🦅 Air Force One: In 2019 and 2020, foreign employees in India passed along files and forwarded emails containing technical data about the plane that carries the US president.
✈️ The F-22: Between 2013 and 2017, foreign employees in China improperly downloaded files containing information about the fighter jet known as the “Raptor.” They also accessed technical files about the F-18, the F-15, missile systems, and aerial defense programs.
🛩️ The F-18: In 2019, Boeing exported too many bonded assemblies for “Hornet” trailing edge flaps to Switzerland.
🚁 The Apache: In 2018 and 2019, Boeing “repeatedly exported without authorization technical data” to the government of Israel and Israeli military contractors that facilitated the installation of “aftermarket hardware add-ons” to its attack helicopter fleets.