The family of John Barnett, a former Boeing quality control manager who became a prominent whistleblower over aviation safety concerns, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the aerospace giant, accusing it of a campaign of harassment and intimidation that they allege led directly to his suicide.
Mr. Barnett, 62, was found dead in his truck in what was determined to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound on March 9, 2024, in Charleston, South Carolina, according to local police reports. At the time of his death, he resided in Louisiana. The tragic incident followed days of intense questioning by attorneys regarding allegations he made against Boeing related to aircraft safety defects, according to court documents.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in federal court in South Carolina, claims that Boeing orchestrated a systematic “campaign of harassment, abuse, and intimidation intended to discourage, discredit, and humiliate him until he would either give up or be discredited.”
A Boeing spokesperson released a statement this week addressing the situation: “We are saddened by John Barnett’s death and extend our condolences to his family.”
Mr. Barnett retired from Boeing in 2017, having served many years as a quality control manager. Following his retirement, he publicly voiced serious safety concerns regarding Boeing aircraft. He notably warned about discarded metal shavings near critical wiring for flight controls—debris that could potentially sever wires and lead to catastrophic failure mid-flight. Mr. Barnett also raised alarms about oxygen systems aboard Boeing’s 787 aircraft, estimating that up to a quarter of these systems were defective.
The lawsuit asserts that Mr. Barnett repeatedly informed his supervisors of these safety issues while still employed, but instead of addressing them, the company allegedly retaliated. His family contends that Boeing management deliberately provided him inaccurate negative performance reviews, assigned him unfavorable work shifts, and publicly blamed him for delays, resulting in workplace hostility and preventing internal transfers.
This prolonged and intense workplace pressure reportedly led Mr. Barnett to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), his family argues. The lawsuit details how his mental health deteriorated progressively under what the family's attorneys described as relentless humiliation inflicted by Boeing, leading to severe depression and anxiety attacks, ultimately culminating in his suicide.
“Boeing had threatened to break John, and break him it did,” attorneys representing Mr. Barnett’s family wrote in their court filing.
The family seeks unspecified financial damages for emotional distress and mental anguish, compensation for lost wages—including back pay and projected future earnings—and reimbursement for medical expenses related to Mr. Barnett's deteriorating mental health. They are also requesting recovery of life insurance benefits lost due to the circumstances of his death.
In court filings, attorneys for Mr. Barnett’s family assert, “Whether or not Boeing intended to drive John to his death or merely destroy his ability to function, it was absolutely foreseeable that PTSD and John’s unbearable depression, panic attacks, and anxiety would elevate the risk of suicide. Boeing may not have pulled the trigger, but Boeing’s conduct was the clear cause—and the clear foreseeable cause—of John’s death.”
The case continues to highlight ongoing concerns about workplace treatment of whistleblowers and aviation safety practices at one of the world’s largest aerospace manufacturers. Boeing, which has faced intense scrutiny in recent years over aircraft safety issues, now confronts fresh legal and reputational challenges stemming from these grave allegations.
As James Lavish pointed out on Twitter, the company has been awash with controversy last year, including the following separate incidents:
- Passenger door blown out, mid-air
- cockpit window cracked, take-off
- oxygen leak, pre-flight (Blinken incident)
- passenger notices bolts missing on wing, pre-flight
- lost wheel during take-off, wobbled off
- lost wheel after take-off, mid-air
- plane arrived with cargo door open
- landing gear malfunction
- engine failure mid-flight
- engine fire, mid-flight
And now they're going to build the next-gen fighter jet.
