09:54 AM EDT, 05/30/2025 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with Boeing's ( BA ) statement in the fifth and sixth paragraphs.)

The US Justice Department asked a judge to dismiss a criminal fraud charge against Boeing ( BA ) over two fatal 737 MAX crashes in favor of an expanded civil settlement, news outlets reported Thursday, citing the company and the prosecutors.

Under the deal, Boeing ( BA ) avoids criminal conviction which could complicate its access to government contracts but instead will pay an additional $444.5 million on top of the $243.6 million in previous fines to families of the 346 people killed in the crashes, Reuters report.

Boeing ( BA ) will pay $1.1 billion in total, including $455 million to upgrade the company's safety programs, Reuters cited the Justice Department as saying.

The government said the settlement, which Boeing ( BA ) reportedly signed Thursday, "secures meaningful accountability, delivers substantial and immediate public benefits, and brings finality to a difficult and complex case whose outcome would otherwise be uncertain," Reuters reported.

The company said in an emailed statement to MT Newswires that it was committed to complying with its obligations under the resolution.

"We are deeply sorry for their losses, and remain committed to honoring their loved ones' memories by pressing forward with the broad and deep changes to our company that we have made to strengthen our safety system and culture," a Boeing ( BA ) spokesperson said.

The Justice Department did not immediately reply to MT Newswires' request for comment.

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