The US aviation group Boeing seemed to have just freed itself from the crisis – but there is new trouble. Ironically, Boeing’s most important model series 737 Max is affected, which has already caused a long misery for the Airbus rival after two devastating crashes. Due to manufacturing defects and necessary inspections, deliveries would have to be throttled, Boeing said. Investors reacted nervously, the stock initially fell by more than five percent in pre-market US trading on Friday.
Boeing explained that it is not an acute safety risk and does not affect the 737 Max fleet in flight operations. However, the problem affects a “significant number” of machines that have not yet been handed over to customers and are still in production. The US Air Traffic Control Authority FAA has been informed. The new flaws were found at supplier Spirit AeroSystems, which makes the fuselages of many of the 737 Max mid-range jets. In its own statement, the company spoke of a “quality problem”.
Part installed incorrectly
Specifically, according to Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems, it is an incorrectly installed part on the rear part of the fuselage. Spirit is working on a solution to fix the deficiencies. According to Boeing, the defective parts should be replaced if necessary. Until then, lower delivery numbers can be expected. For the US aircraft giant, the problem comes at a very inconvenient time and at a critical time. The 737 Max line is Boeing’s most sought-after model line and one of its top earners. It was actually planned to ramp up production significantly by June. Instead, now expensive repairs threaten.
In addition, due to the tragic history of the 737 Max, new problems are particularly uncomfortable for Boeing. Because the medium-haul jet already has the image of an unfortunate pilot. The model series had already brought Boeing deep into the crisis due to two crashes due to defective control software, in which a total of 346 people died in 2018 and 2019. After the series had been banned from launching for around a year and a half, the debacle of the US group around the 737 Max seemed to have only just been largely overcome. In the first quarter, Boeing even managed to deliver more aircraft than arch-rival Airbus.
