Boeing whistleblower tells Senate he was threatened by boss after raising concerns about plane safety: ‘They know where you live’

A Boeing whistleblower said at a senate hearing that he faced threats and verbal abuse after he spoke up about safety issues at the planemaker.

Quality engineer Sam Salehpour was asked on Wednesday if there’s a “culture of retaliation” against whistleblowers at Boeing.

“Absolutely… The only reason I have my job [is] because I had my attorneys, we filed for the whistleblower system before I spoke up,” he said.

Mr Salehpour added that he was once berated by his boss during a 40-minute phone call.

“They call you on your personal phone to let you know that they know where you live,” he said. “They know where you are. And they can hurt you.”

“The threats… really scare me, believe me, but I am at peace,” he added. “If something happens to me, I am at peace because I feel like by coming forward, I will be saving a lot of lives and my piece whatever happens it happens.”

“We put Band-Aid over Band-Aid to resolve the problems and Band-Aid over Band-Aid doesn't cover it, maybe we need to consider some engineering fundamentals,” he said, before detailing extensive retaliatory behaviour, such as preventing Mr Salehpour from attending a doctor’s appointment and asking for loyalty pledges in writing. The engineer also said he was afraid he may be physically harmed.

“My boss said, ‘I would have killed someone who said what you said in the meeting,’” Mr Salehpour testified before the Senate committee. “This is not safety culture, when you get threatened by bringing issues of safety concerns.”

Mr Salehpour went public with his claims last week regarding his allegations about two of Boeing’s planes. The planemaker was the subject of extensive news coverage in January after a door panel blew off mid-flight of an Alaska Airlines 737 Max.