Aviation expert reacts to Boeing CEO departure later this year [Video]

ST. LOUIS – Boeing CEO David Calhoun will step down from the embattled plane maker at the end of the year Amid heavy scrutiny since early January, when a panel blew off a brand-new Alaska Airlines 737 Max.

“All these changes were a matter of when, not if,” Scott Hamilton, managing director of aviation consulting firm Leeham Company, said.

“Really, this goes back to 1996 and the merger with McDonald Douglas and the emphasis on shareholder value that began at that time.”

Hamilton cites Boeing’s focus on increased production rates and allegations from labor unions that the company didn’t properly address safety violations.

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“This has been three decades in getting here. It’s going to take a long time to reverse that impact,” he said.

In addition to the door plug incident, the loss of a tire from a Boeing 777 shortly after takeoff and the discovery of a …