If  2019 was an “annus horribilis” for US aerospace giant Boeing, the start to 2020 hasn’t been much better in the run-up to new chief executive David Calhoun officially taking the reins on January 13.

Calhoun, 62, will have his work cut out to earn the $US28 million CBS News estimates he can potentially take home in 2020 as he moves to repair relationships with regulators and customers and focus on getting the 737 MAX back in the air.

In the last week alone, news emerged that the US Federal Aviation Authority has proposed fining Boeing $5.4 million over potentially defective wing parts on its 737 MAX aircraft, its outgoing CE0 made global headlines thanks to a massive payout of at least $US62 million and series of stunning internal messages left its credibility seriously tarnished.

One of its planes was shot down by the Iranian military, a major supplier announced massive layoffs due to the MAX crisis and the company is still grappling with the European Commission review of its deal to take a major stake in Embraer.

READ: Iran admits to shooting down Ukrainian 737.

Boeing is no longer in the spotlight for the downing last week of the Ukrainian 737 after the Iranian admission its Revolutionary Guard shot down the jet in what it says was a mistake.

A European Commission review that delayed the Embraer deal is also underway again after a two-month hiatus with a new decision deadline of April 30.

But that’s about as good as the recent news has been for the embattled plane-maker.

The $US5.4 million fine for issues involving slat tracks on the leading edge of a wing is on top of a $US3.9 million fine the US regulator proposed last month for similar problems on older 737NG jets.

The manufacturing problem hasn’t caused an issue with aircraft but the FAA says Boeing failed to adequately oversee its suppliers to ensure they complied with its safety assurance system and then knowingly submitted aircraft for FAA approval when it knew they had failed strength tests.

The company said it would ensure that all inspections and necessary part replacements were performed on the MAX aircraft before return service.

The eyebrow-raising payout to ousted CEO Dennis Muilenburg does not include any severance pay or a 2019 annual bonus. He also forfeited stock worth $US14.6 million.

However, the value of stock and pension entitlements to which he is contractually entitled totals $62.2 million at a time major supplier Spirit AeroSystems announced it was laying off 2,800 employees because of ongoing uncertainty about when the MAX will resume service.

Boeing has said it does not at this stage expect to furlough staff but it is this month suspending production of the 737 MAX and there is still no publicly available date for the grounded fleet to resume service.

The aircraft has been grounded since March 2019 after new flight control software was linked to fatal crashes at Indonesia’s Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines. The two crashes killed a combined 346 people.

Getting the MAX back in the skies will be Calhoun’s top priority but the job of convincing the public everything is safe and above board has not been made easier by pages of damaging internal messages released last week.

The messages, seen by AirlineRatings, have stunned the industry with their cavalier attitude to safety and the regulatory process as well as their disdain for airlines.

The messages go back as far as 2013 but may relate to the development of 737 MAX flight simulators.

They reveal a campaign by some elements in the company to prevent regulators and airlines introducing simulator training for MAX pilots.

This included dissuading what appears to be an unnamed Jakarta-based airline that its pilots needed additional training.

The emails ridiculed regulators as well as fellow Boeing employees with one email noting that the MAX was “designed by clowns, who in turn are supervised by monkeys”.

There is talk of “Jedi mind tricking” various parties.

The chief technical pilot for the MAX talks about being under pressure to prevent regulators from requiring simulator training.

“I want to stress the importance of holding firm that there will not be any type of simulator training required to transition from NG to MAX,’’ he says. “Boeing will not allow that to happen. We’ll go face to face with any regulator who tries to make that a requirement.”

Boeing recently surprised many by dropping its opposition to simulator training for the MAX ahead of the return to service.

There are also further suggestions that employees may have concealed problems with the MAX  Flight simulators during FAA certification and in one exchange an employee says he would not put his family on a “MAX simulator trained aircraft”.

“I still haven’t been forgiven by God for the covering up I did last year,’’ another message says.

In releasing the messages, Boeing condemned the language used and said a review of MAX simulators concluded they were functioning correctly.

READ: Boeing confident on MAX simulators despite internal messages.

However, they have provided ammunition for US lawmakers investigating the MAX crashes and Boeing’s relationship with the FAA.

“They paint a deeply disturbing picture of the lengths Boeing was apparently willing to go to in order to evade scrutiny from regulators, flight crews, and the flying public, even as its own employees were sounding alarms internally,’’  said House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure chair Peter DeFazio.

The FAA said in a statement its experts have determined that nothing in the documents pointed to any safety risks that had not identified as part of the MAX review process but described the tone and content of some messages as “disappointing”.

“The FAA maintains a rigorous process for qualifying flight simulators,’’ it said.

“Upon reviewing the records for the specific simulator mentioned in the documents, the agency determined that piece of equipment has been evaluated and qualified three times in the last six months. Any potential safety deficiencies identified in the documents have been addressed.”

Boeing says a review of its 737 MAX simulators concluded they are functioning correctly despite new messages that raise questions about how the company dealt with the regulators in getting them certified.

The company on Thursday said it was publicly releasing additional messages sent to the Federal Aviation Administration and law-makers prior to Christmas and that it remained confident in the regulatory process for qualifying the MAX simulators.

Similar to damaging messages unveiled in October, the new messages include conversations among Boeing employees about software problems and other issues with MAX simulators and suggest some may have been concealed from the Federal Aviation Administration.

READ: Canadian PM in starling claims 737 was hit by a missile.

“I still haven’t been forgiven by God for the covering up I did last year,” The New York Times quotes one of the employees as saying in one of the latest messages from 2018, noting this is apparently in reference to interactions with the regulator.

An employee asks in another message: “Would you put your family on a Max simulator trained aircraft? I wouldn’t.”

A colleague responds: “No.”

Boeing acknowledged the messages, which related to development and certification of MAX simulators in 2017 and 2018, contained provocative language and in some cases “raise questions about Boeing’s interactions with the FAA in connection with the simulator qualification process”.

“Having carefully reviewed the issue, we are confident that all of Boeing’s MAX simulators are functioning effectively,” it said.

“The qualification activities referenced in these communications occurred early in the service life of these simulators.

“Since that time, both internal and external subject matter experts have repeatedly tested and qualified the simulators at issue.

“Indeed, more than twenty regulatory qualifications of MAX simulators, performed by the FAA and multiple international regulators, have been conducted since early 2017.”

The company said a specific Miami simulator used for the early qualification tests had been re-evaluated six times.

It said the simulator software had been constantly improving during this time, through repeated cycles of testing, qualification, and revision of the software code.

“These communications do not reflect the company we are and need to be, and they are completely unacceptable,” it said.

“That said, we remain confident in the regulatory process for qualifying these simulators.”

But House Committee on Transportation and  Infrastructure chair Peter DeFazio said the new emails were “incredibly damning”.

He said they showed a coordinated effort dating back to the earliest days of the 737 MAX program to conceal critical information from the regulators and the public.

“They paint a deeply disturbing picture of the lengths Boeing was apparently willing to go to in order to evade scrutiny from regulators, flight crews, and the flying public, even as its own employees were sounding alarms internally,’’ he said.

“I can only imagine how painful it must be for the families of the 346 victims to read these new documents that detail some of the earliest and most fundamental errors in the decisions that went into the fatally flawed aircraft.”

Boeing said the additional documents were identified in legal reviews of the MAX program and the decision to provide them to the FAA and Congress reflected its transparency and cooperation.

“We welcome, and will fully support, any additional review the FAA believes is appropriate in connection with any of these matters, as well as the continued involvement of the relevant congressional committees with these issues,” it said.

Apologizing for the messages, Boeing said it had made significant changes to the company’s culture, safety processes and organization.

“The language used in these communications, and some of the sentiments they express, are inconsistent with Boeing values, and the company is taking appropriate action in response,” it said.

“This will ultimately include disciplinary or other personnel action, once the necessary reviews are completed.”

Its days may be numbered but the Airbus A380 continues to impress passengers as All Nippon Airways moves to launch its third superjumbo on flights between Tokyo Narita and Honolulu.

The Japanese carrier expects to receive its third “FLYING HONU” in April and increase A380 flights on the Narita-Honolulu route from 10 to 14 a week from July 1.

The colorful livery of the giant planes has been designed to represent facets of Hawaii.

READ: Airlines join wave of support for Aussie bushfire victims

The blue A380 entered service in May 2019 and represented Hawaiian skies while the second, emerald green plane alludes to the clear water around the islands.

The latest plane will feature an orange livery inspired by the Hawaiian sunset and is expected to roll-out at Airbus this month.

All Nippon Airways says both the aircraft and their unique livery have been well-received by passengers.

“We took great care in the design of our FLYING HONUs to add touches such as family-friendly seating and a custom interior that make it well suited to the Narita-Honolulu route,” said ANA senior vice president Seiichi Takahashi.

“Combined with design cues from Hawaiian culture, the unparalleled comfort and capacity of the FLYING HONUs will allow ANA to provide unrivaled service and efficiency on this increasingly prominent route. “

The upper deck of the A380 boasts eight first-class seats, the first time this class has been offered on the leisure route, each with a door to ensure privacy.

The 56 business-class seats are a popular option for honeymooners and families and allow people to sit next to each other while providing individual aisle access.

Completing the upper deck is a premium economy cabin with 20 seats.

The main deck has 383 economy seats, including 60 couch seats that allow passengers to lie across three or four seats by folding up the leg rests.

All classes have access to bar counters and there is a multi-purpose room for mothers with babies.

The airline says it has designed the cabins to allow passengers to feel the Hawaiian spirit from the start of their holiday with lighting that is evocative of blue skies, sunsets, night skies and rainbows.

As Australia continues to battle its massive bushfire emergency, airlines have been ponying up to help victims and offer support for emergency workers battling the unprecedented crisis.

And it hasn’t just been the homegrown carriers opening their wallets.

The Qantas Group, which includes low-cost carrier Jetstar, donated $A1 million in cash to the Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund and has been making onboard announcements urging customers to donate.

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It is setting up collection points in terminals and set up a system for frequent flyers to redeem points for donations.

The airline is also one of the companies offering paid leave to volunteer firefighters and has been working with US aid agency Direct Relief to get 100,000 donated masks to bushfire-affected communities.

Qantas expects its total support to top $A3m.

“The bushfires cutting through communities and the environment across Australia has been shocking and tragic,’’ the airline said.

“The bravery of our volunteer firefighters, emergency services and the military has been inspiring and the kindness of individuals and community groups incredibly heart-warming.”

The Virgin Australia Group has been supporting the Salvation Army Disaster Appeal and matching staff donations dollar-for-dollar up to $A250,000.

The company has been offering passengers affected by the fires the ability to change bookings without penalty and also offers staff who are volunteer “fireys” paid leave.

Also on offer is support for community organizations requiring travel or logistical support.

“Through our relationships with the Salvation Army Emergency Services and organization Team Rubicon, we stand ready to support flights for emergency workers and volunteers from those organizations who are being flown to affected areas as needed,” Virgin said.

“The group has also been providing discounted airfares to emergency service organization throughout the duration of the bushfire period,.’

Across the Tasman, Air New Zealand has donated $A100,000 and is flying Kiwi firefighters and emergency personnel to Australia.

Acting chief executive Geoff McDowall said the airline had assured the New Zealand government it would continue to help.

“It is simply devastating to see this scale of loss and our hearts go out to our Australian colleagues, customers and neighbors. Kia kaha (stay strong),’’ McDowall said.

Singapore Airlines has also donated $A100,000 to the red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Appeal.

It is also helping customers affected by the fires on a case-by-case basis and offering support with booking changes.

“Australians have supported us for the past 53 years and we hope that this donation will go some way to supporting the people and communities affected by these bushfires,” Singapore Airlines regional vice president Philip Goh said.

“It is difficult to fathom the scale of the fires across Australia as it has now affected an area more than 140 times the size of Singapore.”

United Airlines is donating $US250,000 to the GoFundMe campaign set up by Hollywood personality Ellen DeGeneres. It is also matching donations for wildlife relief as well as up to $50,000 of donations from its MileagePlus members.

On the manufacturer front, Boeing has donated $A1 million for recovery and relief efforts.

The US aerospace giant, which has a significant presence in Australia, said the contributions would be directed across the country through the Australian Red Cross.

“Boeing’s global team, including our 3,800 employees across Australia, are deeply saddened by the tragic impact of the Australian bushfires,” interim chief executive  Greg Smith said.

“Through our partnership with the Australian Red Cross, we are working quickly to bring recovery and relief efforts to those residents most impacted by these devastating fires.”

The company is also matching qualifying employee contributions made to eligible nonprofits for Australian bushfire relief efforts.