Elon Musk says ‘people will die due to DEI’ as airlines revealed to prioritize diversity hiring over safety

The comments were made following horrific reports of significant upticks in near-collisions on airport tarmacs over the past year, as well as the shocking situation that recently occurred on an Alaska Airlines flight when a panel blew off the side of a two-month-old Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft, causing depressurization of the cabin and the need for an emergency landing.

"People will die due to DEI," Musk said on X. "Do you want to fly in an airplane where they prioritized DEI hiring over your safety? That is actually happening."

The X owner made the comment in response to a report indicating that airline giant Boeing began prioritizing hiring on the basis of diversity, equity, and inclusion in 2022.

According to Boeing's SEC filings, the annual compensation plan that previously incentivized CEOs and executives to increase shareholder profit while prioritizing safety was modified at the start of 2022 to reward them for achieving DEI targets.

On Wednesday, Musk commented on an episode of The Matt Walsh Show, published on X, that discussed "How government 'diversity' initiatives are leading us to a major airline disaster."

Musk took aim at DEI policies again, and stated that "Merit should be the only reason for hiring, especially for jobs where your family’s lives are at stake."

A recent report revealed that there were 19 separate occasions where planes nearly crashed into each other at airports in the United States during the first ten months of 2023.

That number, the highest since 2016, comes as the Federal Aviation Administration continues to struggle in its quest to hire more air traffic controllers.

According to data from the FAA reviewed by the Wall Street Journal, in many instances where planes came close to colliding, an aircraft or vehicle was entering an area it was not supposed to be in, forcing another to act quickly to avoid an accident.

Controllers say they have been pushed to the brink, working 10-hour shifts, 6 days per week, on irregular schedules amid an ongoing staffing crisis within the airline industry.

There were 46 "close calls" between commercial airlines in July, the Federal Aviation Administration reported.

Last week, Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California was forced to make an emergency landing after a panel blew off the side of the two-month-old Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft in midair causing depressurization of the cabin.

Boeing has since announced that they have grounded all Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft.

Walk Away founder Brandon Straka pointed out that diversity hiring in the airline industry has been problematic for quite some time, writing on X, "To make matters worse, articles about the DEI hiring in the airline industry indicate that they're struggling to find enough pilots and to diversify."

"So- it's not exactly like there's such an overwhelming number of women and racial minorities training that we get to pick the best of the best," he wrote. "It's more like: you check the boxes, you're in."