Boeing engaged $9-an-hour Indian engineers to build 737 Max Software

The Max software was developed at a time Boeing was laying off experienced engineers and pressing suppliers to cut costs

It remains the mystery at the heart of Boeing Co’s 737 Max crisis: how a company renowned for meticulous design made seemingly basic software mistakes leading to a pair of deadly crashes. Longtime Boeing engineers say the effort was complicated by a push to outsource work to lower-paid contractors.

The Max software -- plagued by issues that could keep the planes grounded months longer after U.S. regulators this week revealed a new flaw -- was developed at a time Boeing was laying off experienced engineers and pressing suppliers to cut costs.

Increasingly, the iconic American planemaker and its subcontractors have