Consequence for aircraft manufacturers
Boeing is drastically reducing its 737 production
April 4, 2024, 6:54 a.m
An aircraft door comes loose in the air, incorrectly drilled holes, a loose fuselage part: Since the American aircraft authority is tightening its control over Boeing due to numerous breakdowns, the company is taking further action and reducing its production. With consequences for the airlines.
According to insiders, production of the 737 MAX model at aircraft manufacturer Boeing has fallen sharply in recent weeks. The reason for this is stricter controls at the factory by the US authorities, explained industry insiders. In addition, the belts would deliver more slowly so that outstanding work on almost finished machines could be completed.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has capped Boeing at 38 new jets per month after part of the outer wall of a 737 MAX fell out in mid-air due to an assembly error in January. According to insiders, the production rate even fell to single digits at the end of March. In addition, Boeing is struggling with bottlenecks in the maintenance of some engines, which means that the aircraft are idle for months after they go into service. Just a few days ago, Boeing announced that CEO Dave Calhoun would be stepping down at the end of the year as a result of the problems.
The decline in production is likely to have an impact on the entire aviation industry, as airlines will cut their flight schedules due to a lack of aircraft or extend existing leases to meet demand.
European rival Airbus is also building fewer machines than planned. Around 50 A320 Neo family jets are currently being produced every month. At the beginning of the year, however, 58 aircraft per month were planned, according to industry circles. However, since Boeing had to significantly reduce production in order to convince the authorities that operations were running smoothly, Airbus expanded its lead in the market for these jets