Boeing communications chief resigns over sexist article he wrote THREE DECADES ago opposing women's service in the military
Boeing's communications chief Niel Golightly has resigned over an article he wrote more than three decades ago arguing women should not serve in combat.
The former U.S. military pilot's exit leaves Boeing trying to fill the crucial role for the fourth time in less than three years, just as it is battling to shore up its brand after the prolonged safety grounding of its Boeing 737 MAX jetliner.
The Senior Vice President of Communications job has become the industry's biggest hot seat as Boeing fends off criticism for its handling of the 737 MAX crisis.
Boeing Senior Vice President of Communication Niel Golightly (pictured) resigned from the position on Thursday after only six months 'My article was a 29-year-old Cold War navy pilot's misguided contribution to a debate that was live at the time,' Golightly said in a statement included in Boeing's announcement.'My argument was embarrassingly wrong and offensive. The article is not a reflection of who I am; but nonetheless I have decided that in the interest of the company I will step down.'
In the December 1987 US Naval Institute magazine article titled 'No Right to Fight,' the former military pilot suggests women would disrupt 'exclusively male intangibles' which male soldiers fight for in war.
'At issue is not whether women can fire M-60s, dogfight MiGs, or drive tanks. Introducing women into combat would destroy the exclusively male intangibles of war fighting and the feminine images of what men fight for - peace, home, family.'
Golightly published an article in the US Naval Institute's magazine 33 years ago in December 1987
He argued against women serving in the military and attempted to list several reasons as to why not
An excerpt from the article suggested that female soldiers could make a squadron appear 'weak,' possibly prompting defeat on the battlefield.
Golightly told staff in an email seen by Reuters that the exclusion of women at the time was 'government policy and broadly supported in society. It was also wrong.'
Golightly declined to comment beyond Boeing's statement and his email.
Golightly's departure after just six months on the job, during which he was said to be introducing sweeping changes, followed the board's review of an internal anonymous ethics complaint that flagged his article.
He decided to step down after discussions with Boeing Chief Executive Dave Calhoun and others, Golightly said in his email.
'I greatly respect Niel for stepping down in the interest of the company,' wrote Calhoun in an email.
New York Post reports that Greg Smith, Boeing’s chief financial officer and executive vice president of enterprise operations, will oversee the communications role for the time being,
Golightly decided to resign after having a conversation with Boeing CEO David L. Calhoun (left) and the position will be temporarily filled by Greg Smith, Boeing’s chief financial officer and executive vice president of enterprise operations
Golightly acted after Boeing board members, already feeling pressure from the 15-month-old MAX crisis, had expressed little patience for a potentially damaging new distraction, people familiar with the matter said.
The apprehension of board members comes as a reckoning on corporate company culture has sparked.
U.S. employers have been more responsive to complaints related to sex and racial equality and diversity fueled in part by the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment, and anti-racist activism following the slaying of Black men by police.
In June, ABC executive Barbara Fedida was put on administrative leave for allegedly making sexist and racist comments at staffers.
Boeing has touted its strong commitment to improving diversity, though the number of women on its executive council has fallen from five to two since the beginning of 2019, according to Boeing's annual reports and website.
Golightly: 'My argument was embarrassingly wrong and offensive. The article is not a reflection of who I am; but nonetheless I have decided that in the interest of the company I will step down'
Apart from a revolving door of top staffers, Boeing is still recovering from its 737 Max crisis that saw 346 people killed in two plane crashes.
On October 29, 2018, a Lion Air flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea just 13 minutes after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia.
The flight crew made a distress call shortly before losing control but the crash killed 189 people.
The aircraft was almost brand-new, having arrived at Lion Air just three months earlier.
Less than five months later, a second crash occurred on March 10, 2019, when the Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 crashed, killing all 149 passengers and eight crew members on board.
The aircraft had departed from Addis Ababa Bole International Airport and was bound for Nairobi, Kenya.
The Lion Air plane was almost brand-new, having arrived just three months earlier. Pictured, debris from the Lion Air crash is examined
The Lion Air flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea on October 29, 2018, 13 minutes after takeoff from Jakarta, Indonesia. The fatal crash killed 189 people on board (pictured, investigators examine parts of the plane recovered from the sea)
Just after takeoff, the pilot radioed a distress call and was given immediate clearance to turn around and land.
But the plane crashed 40 miles from the airport, just six minutes after leaving the runway. The aircraft involved was only four months old.
The grounding of the 737 Max triggered lawsuits and investigations by Congress and the Department of Justice.
Questions were also raised about the FAA and Boeing's safety approval process.
Investigators blamed faults in the flight control system, which the 103-year-old company has been overhauling for months to meet new safety demands.
Most recently, Boeing announced that it would begin flight safety test of the aircraft model in an effort to get them back into the sky.
Pilots and technical experts from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing are thought to be planning three days of tests, potentially beginning on Monday.
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