Science that's not closely linked to engineering isn't particularly important.

Of course. To experiment you need a lot of engineering. In turn, engineering itself is implementation of science results.

Even if Maxwell's equations turn out to be false, they still describe with pinpoint accuracy the functioning of electrical works and fiber optics.

If you remember history of science there was completely wrong theory of flogiston - kind of weightless matter that represent heat. Despite being wrong that theory perfectly allowed basic thermodynamics calculations.

It's become clear that when people talk about 'science/scientists', they're really talking about engineers.

Unfortunately, today when people talk about science/scientists, they talk about completely distorted and perverted imitation that was created by MSM and mass culture.

To do science, i.e. to study new things, you have to use previous results of science. To use them, you have to implement them for real. Implementing science results is engineering. So, to be a scientist you have to be engineer. To be an engineer you have to be a scientist.