[16] During the 1960s and 1970s, the company diversified into industries such as outer space travel, marine craft, agriculture, energy production and transit systems.

[19] The delay was caused by objections from the European Commission, which ultimately placed three conditions on the merger: exclusivity agreements with three US airlines would be terminated, separate accounts would be maintained for the McDonnell-Douglas civil aircraft business, and some defense patents were to be made available to competitors.

[20] In 2020, Quartz reported that after the merger there was a "clash of corporate cultures, where Boeing's engineers and McDonnell Douglas's bean-counters went head-to-head", which the latter won, and that this may have contributed to the events leading up to the 737 MAX crash crisis.

[25] On August 18, 2020, CEO Dave Calhoun announced further job cuts;[26] on October 28, 2020, nearly 30,000 employees were laid off, as the airplane manufacturer was increasingly losing money due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[28][29] After the January 2024 Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 and other incidents, one shareholder proposed relocating the corporate headquarters back to the Seattle area in hopes of getting engineering and quality control teams on-site access to key decision-makers.

[37][38] On October 28, Boeing initiated a significant share sale, valued at nearly $19 billion, to address cash-flow issues and avoid a potential downgrade to junk status.

[48][49][50][51][52] In June 2020, the Federal Aviation Administration found several 737 MAX defects that Boeing deferred to fix, in violation of regulations.

[53] In September 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives concluded its own investigation and cited numerous instances where Boeing dismissed employee concerns with a 737 MAX flight stabilizing feature (MCAS) that caused the two fatal accidents, prioritized deadline and budget constraints over safety, and lacked transparency in disclosing essential information to the FAA.

[55] In September 2022, Boeing was ordered to pay a further $200 million over charges of misleading investors about safety issues related to these crashes.

Boeing's claim was described as "preposterous" by HuffPost:[57] Passengers aboard the plane, the plaintiffs argued in court, "undeniably suffered horrific emotional distress, pain and suffering, and physical impact/injury while they endured extreme G-forces, braced for impact, knew the airplane was malfunctioning, and ultimately plummeted nose-down to the ground at terrifying speed".While the investigations into the crashes of the 737 MAX were proceeding, the Boeing 777X, the company's largest capacity twin jet and the largest ever built, made its maiden flight on January 25, 2020,[58] but also experienced problems.

[60][61] On January 5, 2024, on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, a door plug blowout[62][63] occurred on a 737 MAX 9 jetliner after the plane had reached just over 16,000 feet, leaving a door-sized hole in the fuselage and the aircraft made an emergency landing at Portland International Airport successfully with several people onboard injured, although all had subsequently been "medically cleared".

[65][66][67] United Airlines found loose bolts on jets grounded by the FAA, raising questions about possible systemic problems with the Boeing 737 MAX 9.

[69] On February 6, the National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report indicating that four bolts used to secure the panel had been removed, and appeared not to have been replaced, at Boeing’s factory in Renton, Washington.

[72] In 2006, the UCLA Center for Environmental Risk Reduction released a study showing that Boeing's Santa Susana Field Laboratory, a site that was a former Rocketdyne test and development site in the Simi Hills of eastern Ventura County in Southern California, had been contaminated by Rocketdyne with toxic and radioactive waste.

[76] Aviation's share of the greenhouse gas emissions was poised to grow, as air travel increases and ground vehicles use more alternative fuels like ethanol and biodiesel.

[76] Boeing executives said the company was collaborating with Brazilian biofuels maker Tecbio, Aquaflow Bionomic of New Zealand, and other fuel developers around the world.

[79] In 2007 and 2008, the company benefited from over US$10 billion of long-term loan guarantees, helping finance the purchase of their commercial aircraft in countries including Brazil, Canada, Ireland, and the United Arab Emirates, from the Export-Import Bank of the United States, some 65% of the total loan guarantees the bank made in the period.

[81][82] Between 1995 and early 2021, the company agreed to pay US$4.3 billion to settle 84 instances of misconduct, including US$615 million in 2006 in relation to illegal hiring of government officials and improper use of proprietary information.

[86][87] In the 2008 presidential election, Barack Obama "was by far the biggest recipient of campaign contributions from Boeing employees and executives, hauling in US$197,000 – five times as much as John McCain, and more than the top eight Republicans combined".

[88] Boeing has a corporate citizenship program centered on charitable contributions in five areas: education, health, human services, environment, the arts, culture, and civic engagement.

[89] In February 2012, Boeing Global Corporate Citizenship partnered with the Insight Labs to develop a new model for foundations to more effectively lead the sectors they serve.

[94] Boeing has been accused of unethical practices (in violation of the Procurement Integrity Act) while attempting to submit a revised bid to NASA for their lunar landing project.

[100] During the Israel-Gaza war (2023-present), Boeing's stock prices soared due to additional Israeli weapons contracts[101], while mass demonstrations sought to interrupt defense supplier summits and block shipments of weapons for the Israel Defense Forces at Boeing facilities in St. Charles, Missouri,[102] Tukwila, Washington,[103] and Gresham, Oregon[104], due to the mass violations of International humanitarian law committed by Israel.

Due to higher sales in other divisions and an influx in deliveries of commercial jetliners in 2021, second quarter revenue increased by 44%, reaching nearly $17 billion.

Ortberg has communicated his commitment to reinforcing Boeing's position as an industry leader and has outlined his vision for the company's continued success.