Boeing 737 MAX back in service at 11 Chinese airlines, US aircraft maker says
- A total of 43 airlines have now resumed operating the 737 MAX, Boeing said in a WeChat post
- In January, China Southern Airlines became the first mainland-based carrier to fly a MAX plane in China in nearly four years
Boeing said on Tuesday that 11 Chinese airlines have resumed operation of the 737 MAX as of April 10, in a positive sign for the US aircraft maker’s attempts to rebuild its business in the world’s second-largest aviation market.
Based on these airlines, the number of 737 MAX returning to commercial service reached 43, accounting for about 45 per cent of the Chinese 737 MAX fleet, the company said in a social media post on its official WeChat account.
The bestselling Boeing model was grounded in March 2019 after fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia, but returned to service around the world starting in late 2020 after modifications to the aircraft and pilot training.
China is the last major market to resume flying the MAX amid ongoing trade tensions with the United States, and the return comes as domestic travel demand rebounds after China abandoned zero-Covid policies.
Foreign airlines began flying the MAX to China in October 2022. In January, China Southern Airlines flew from Guangzhou to Zhengzhou using a MAX plane, marking the plane’s first passenger flight in China in nearly four years.
Boeing did not name who the 11 airlines were but carriers including Hainan Airlines, Fuzhou Airlines, Lucky Air and Air China have flown the jets in the months since.
The US planemaker also said it has upgraded a flight training device for the 737 MAX jet in Shanghai to help with pilot training.
“The move reaffirms our commitment to our civil aircraft customers in China,” said Sherry Carbary, president of Boeing China.
“The equipment upgrade allows us to further enhance our support for Chinese 737 MAX customers as they expand the aircraft’s operations in and around China.”
Meanwhile, Airbus delivered 127 jets in the first quarter, a 9 per cent drop from a year earlier, as shortages of parts such as engines spilled into the new year.
Deliveries totalled 61 aircraft in March, the world’s biggest maker of commercial jetliners said on Tuesday in a statement.
The lower first-quarter tally will make it harder for Airbus to reach its goal of increasing deliveries to 720 aircraft this year.
The European planemaker got off to a slow start in January, delivering just 20 aircraft after citing supply chain constraints for holding up production. The company will need to make up the shortfall with higher output through the rest of the year, Jefferies analyst Chloe Lemarie said in a research note last week, anticipating the first-quarter drop.
Chinese airlines swamped with cabin crew applicants as travel rebounds
CEO Guillaume Faury has warned that parts shortages will hurt the industry for at least the rest of the year.
Airbus delivered 661 aircraft in 2022, after lowering its initial target. It handed over 140 jetliners in the first quarter of last year.
The parts shortages have forced Airbus, based in Toulouse, France, to slow an ambitious plan to ramp up output of its A320 family of single-aisle jets.
The European planemaker is targeting 65 units by the end of 2024, with a further rise to 75 in 2026. Both goals are about a year later than Airbus’s previous projections.
First-quarter sales totalled 142 after cancellations, Airbus said.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
