If you thought that the saga of the Boeing 737 Max was a can of worms, well, it just got a lot more complicated with the announcement by Boeing that it would likely halt production of the new jet in January. In making the announcement, it cited the ongoing uncertainty about getting the jet recertified as the main reason while also holding out hope that things could change for the better and forestall the need for the production hiatus.
The Max, a major update to the 737 single-aisle jet line, was involved in two accidents, one in Indonesia and one in Ethiopia, in which a total of 346 people were killed. In both crashes, a new stability augmentation system known as MCAS is suspected as a contributing factor. The jet was pulled from service after the Ethiopia disaster on March 10, 2019.
A day later, civil aviation authorities around the world, except in the United States, grounded the plane. Two days later, the FAA followed suit. It has been grounded since, costing the company, according to some reports, more than 10 billion in lost sales and settlements, and Boeing faces additional suits over the loss of revenue for airlines and pilot groups.
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Boeing hasn’t announced plans to lay off workers, though it’s hard to say how long that decision will last if the pause in production lasts more than a month or two. Moreover, Boeing’s suppliers almost certainly will in the wake of the pause in production, and economists are predicting the worldwide economy will take a major hit from Boeing shutting down the production line.
