(WJET/WFXP) — Joshua Dean, formerly an auditor at Spirit Aerosystems and whistleblower who alleged that Spirit had failed to address defects along the Boeing 737 production line, died Tuesday after a two-week fight with an infection. He was 45 years old.
Dean had been hospitalized with Influenza B and MRSA, and developed pneumonia, according to a Facebook post from his mother. His condition quickly deteriorated and he was transferred to a hospital in Oklahoma City.
There, he was put on an ECMO machine, which pumps blood outside the body and circulates oxygenated blood, taking over the function of the heart and lungs and allowing other organs to heal. He was also undergoing dialysis. It was soon discovered after a CT scan that Dean suffered a stroke.
Prior to his hospitalization, Dean was said to be “in good health and was noted for having a healthy lifestyle,” according to The Seattle Times, which first reported his death.
Dean worked for Spirit Aerosystems, responsible for manufacturing the 737 fuselage. The Seattle Times reported that Josh was fired from Spirit in April 2023 for “allegedly failing to conduct inspections resulting in faulty tail fin fittings being shipped to Boeing.”
His allegations of “serious and gross misconduct by senior quality management of the 737 production line” were later presented in a civil lawsuit against Spirit by investors.
Dean’s death comes less than two months after Boeing whistleblower John Barnett, 62, was found dead in an apparent suicide. Barnett, 32-year veteran of Boeing, was in the midst of giving dispositions in a long-running retaliation suit against the company.
Barnett’s 2019 whistleblower allegations claimed that overworked employees at its South Carolina plant frequently fitted substandard parts on planes and reported faulty oxygen systems that could result in as many as 1 in 4 oxygen masks not operating properly.
