An Indian airline has placed a large order for 737 Max aircraft from US aircraft manufacturer Boeing – despite the near-disaster. However, it is not the Max 9 type.
Despite the recent safety problems, US aircraft manufacturer Boeing has received a major order from India. The Indian airline Akasa Air, which launched just two years ago, ordered 150 jets from the 737-Max 8 and Max 10 series, the company announced today at an Indian aviation trade fair in Hyderabad. The aircraft are scheduled to be delivered by 2032.
First 40 near miss inspections completed
According to the information, the order does not include any of the Max 9 machines that recently hit the headlines after a near-miss. At the beginning of January, a plane on the way from Portland in the state of Oregon to Ontario Airport had an altitude of around 4,800 meters shortly after Starting suddenly a part of the window came loose.
During inspections of other Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft, airlines also found loose screws. The US aviation authority FAA then imposed an indefinite flight ban on 171 aircraft. Alaska Airlines and United Airlines, the two US airlines that use the affected aircraft, had to cancel hundreds of flights because of the grounding.
In addition, the FAA had initiated investigations that could go far beyond the problem with the specific component. Yesterday the authority announced that it had completed the first 40 inspections and would “thoroughly review” the results. Boeing’s shares fell more than 20 percent this year because of the incident.
There are already frequent problems with the series
Boeing also has problems with the Max models. The company has interrupted deliveries of 737 Max models twice in recent months – first because of quality defects in the rear fuselage section, then because of faulty drill holes in the pressure bulkhead that closes off the rear of the aircraft cabin.
In the fall of 2018, a Lion Air 737-8 Max plane crashed, killing everyone on board. After a similar crash of an Ethiopian Airlines plane in March 2019, aviation authorities around the world grounded the 737 Max.
Only after 20 months and technical improvements were the machines allowed to take off again in the USA. In other regions of the world, re-approval came even later. The disaster cost Boeing billions. The group has still not recovered from the crisis. In 2019 it lost its position as the world’s largest aircraft manufacturer to the European Airbus group – and is still behind it today.