Boeing has recently addressed a parts issue on its 737 Max airplane that may affect its production and delivery. The problem was related to a “non-standard” manufacturing process used on two fittings in aft fuselages, which may impact certain 737 Max 8 planes, the company’s most popular model. The manufacturer clarified that it is not an immediate safety of flight issue and that the in-service fleet can continue to operate safely. However, it will likely affect a significant number of undelivered 737 Max airplanes in production and storage.
Boeing has notified the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the issue and is working to inspect and address the fuselages as needed. The company expressed regret for the impact that this issue may have on affected customers and is in contact with them concerning their delivery schedule. While Boeing expects lower near-term 737 Max deliveries while the required work is completed, it provides additional information in the days and weeks ahead as it better understands the delivery impacts.
This is the latest production issue for Boeing, which previously paused deliveries of its 787 Dreamliners for several weeks and struggled with other production flaws on wide-body jets. Despite this, Boeing reported 64 plane deliveries in March, the highest tally since December, amid an industry-wide shortage of new jets. Although this parts issue may impact its delivery schedule, United does not expect any significant impact on its capacity planes for this summer or the rest of 2023.