You’d think that when a plane company watches its storied name go up in flames like the Hindenburg, someone would be responsible and pay the price. It turns out that for Boeing Corp., that price will come from the stockholders. Dave Calhoun, the CEO of Boeing, only spend four years at the helm of Boeing. Brought in to help fix the brand during COVID, his time in office has been little more than abysmal.
Yet now, as he prepares to leave his post at the age of 67, he’ll be taking millions with him as a parting gift in addition to the millions he was paid to be the CEO. While his departure payment has yet to be determined due to it being based on the price of Boeing stock, it’s likely to be exceptionally large.
Over the previous three years, he has raked in $63 million, with just $1.4 million of that coming in base salary. These kinds of bonuses and extra slush money have cost the aircraft company extensively as they watch their reputation and their storied history fall apart.
Per the last Boeing proxy statement in April 2023, Calhoun is estimated to rake in $15 million in stock, cash, and options for retirement. Meanwhile, Fortune believes that figure looks to realistically be $24 million and could topple $45.5 million should the stock increase by 37%. A jump like this is not expected by any means, but in the wake of their whitewashing campaigns, his departure, and the sudden Epstein-ing of a whistleblower, it could happen.
