Dave Calhoun net worth: Fortune explored as Boeing CEO admits Alaska Airlines incident was their mistake

On Wednesday, January 10, Dave Calhoun, the CEO of Boeing, admitted that the company was responsible for the recent mid-air blowout that took place on an Alaska Airlines flight. In the CEO's first public admission about the incident that took place on January 5, Calhoun said that the planemaker would work with authorities to make sure that something like this never happens again. As per Reuters, he said:

“We're going to approach this, number one, acknowledging our mistake. We're going to approach it with 100% and complete transparency every step of the way.”

David Calhoun's estimated net worth as of January 2024, is approximately $62 million, according to GuruFocus. As the President and CEO of Boeing Co., David Calhoun has around 130,994 shares of Boeing Co. (BA) stock, as of 2022.

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Dave Calhoun has several sources of income

Dave Calhoun, the Boeing CEO, opened up about their recent "mistake" (Image via Facebook/@Infinite Flight and @Captain Marvel)

American businessman David Calhoun is the President and CEO of The Boeing Company. He earlier served as the executive chairman of the board for Nielsen Holdings PLC and has about $14 million worth of shares in the company, as per GuruFocus. He served in his position from 2014 to 2016 after he joined Nielsen as a chief executive officer in 2006.

Furthermore, David Calhoun reportedly has around 44,579 shares of Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) stock, which is valued at over $13 million. He also currently owns over 5,000 units of Boeing Co. stock, valued at over $4,499,450.

According to information obtained from SEC filings, David Calhoun is the owner of five firms in total, including Gates Industrial Corp PLC, Boeing Co., and Caterpillar Inc. He is also part of Virginia Tech’s Pamplin Advisory Council and has co-authored a book How Companies Win with Rick Kash.

Dave Calhoun joined Boeing as a director in 2009 and was promoted to lead independent director in 2018. Following the Boeing 737 MAX groundings in October 2019, he was appointed as the chairman of the company. On December 23, 2019, he resigned from his position as chairman to take on the role of CEO and President of Boeing, taking effect in January 2020.

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All about the Alaska Airlines incident

On Friday, January 5, 2024, an unused emergency exit door blew out on an Alaska Airlines aircraft, Boeing 737 MAX 9, mid-air, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing at Portland International Airport, as per BBC.

The incident took place when the flight was on its way to Ontario, California. The plane reportedly climbed 16,000 feet before the blowout, causing the cabin to depressurize, as per Al Jazeera. All 174 passengers and six crew members landed safely after the emergency.

Federal officials ordered that all Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners be temporarily grounded after the incident. Alaska Airlines reportedly canceled about 160 flights after the blowout, as per a report by Al Jazeera.

In response to the incident, Boeing's CEO Dave Calhoun stated that the company must acknowledge "our mistake." He also emphasized the company's dedication to ensuring the safety of each aircraft before they take off in the future.