Wisk whistleblower sues Boeing's air taxi subsidiary over rushed testing and retaliation
A former software manager at Wisk Aero, Boeing's air taxi subsidiary, filed a lawsuit alleging the company rushed software testing on flight-critical systems and fired her in retaliation for raising safety concerns. The employee claims company executives pressured engineers to reduce testing to meet a deadline for the aircraft's first flight.
What happened
Briahna O'Neill, a former software manager at Wisk Aero, filed a lawsuit in Santa Clara superior court alleging the company rushed software testing on flight-critical systems. O'Neill said she filed two internal safety reports in early 2025 alleging that company executives pushed engineers to reduce testing on flight-critical software to stay on track for the aircraft's first flight later that year. She was fired from Wisk in March 2025, which she alleges was retaliation for raising safety concerns.
Reported impact
O'Neill's firing sparked internal protest, with employees sending messages to Wisk management urging the company to heed her safety concerns, according to screenshots included in court records.
Governance controls
O'Neill stated she raised safety concerns to the company because she believed it was the right thing to do for every passenger who would fly with the technology. The lawsuit alleges discrimination, retaliation and wrongful termination.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.