Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud and pay a fine of $243.6 million to end the US Department of Justice’s investigation into two 737 MAX crashes. This is reported by Reuters.

This refers to the crashes that occurred in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019 and claimed the lives of 346 people. The fraud consisted of knowingly false information that the company provided to the FAA about new software in the 737 MAX.

On June 30, the Department of Justice offered Boeing a plea deal and gave the company until July 7 to accept the agreement or face trial on charges of conspiracy to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

A Boeing spokesperson confirmed that the company “reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department.”

As part of the agreement, the aircraft manufacturer agreed to spend at least $455 million over the next three years to strengthen its safety and compliance programs.

In addition, Boeing’s board will have to meet with relatives of those killed in MAX airplane crashes. The agreement also provides for the appointment of an independent observer who will have to publicly submit annual progress reports to oversee the company’s compliance. Boeing will be on probation for the observer’s three-year term.

The deal still needs to be approved by the court. In the meantime, it has already provoked criticism from the victims’ families, who wanted Boeing to stand trial and face more severe financial consequences.

Lawyers for the families of some of the victims said they plan to put pressure on Judge Reed O’Connor, who is presiding over the case, to reject the deal.