Boeing Fights Sanctions in Comair 737 MAX Refund Dispute

Boeing has asked a U.S. federal court to dismiss a request by the estate of defunct South African airline Comair to impose sanctions over an allegedly deleted “letter of comfort” concerning a disputed aircraft purchase. The case, filed in the U.S. District Court in Seattle, is part of Comair’s ongoing USD83 million lawsuit claiming fraud and breach of contract related to its cancelled order for eight B737-8 MAX aircraft.

Comair alleges that a Boeing representative issued a letter assuring the airline its deposits were refundable, but Boeing says the letter never existed and argues its deletion practices followed standard procedures. Boeing says employee emails are deleted 30 days after departure unless litigation is expected—something it claims wasn’t the case when the relevant employees left in 2015 and 2018. Comair filed its lawsuit in 2023.

Boeing disputes the letter’s authenticity, noting it was produced nine months after initial requests and was dated January 18, 2024—over a decade later than Comair claimed. Metadata showed it was created in 2024, and Comair admitted instructing its eDiscovery vendor to overwrite that metadata, raising concerns about document tampering.

Comair contends Boeing should have anticipated litigation as early as 2012, citing alleged fraud and misrepresentation over the B737 MAX. Boeing counters that such claims are speculative and that disclosures about the MCAS system were made to both the FAA and Comair at the time of purchase.

Boeing argues Comair’s motion for sanctions is a distraction from the weaknesses in its core fraud claims.

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Sources: AirGuide Business airguide.info, bing.com, ch-aviation.com