Boeing 737 Max aircraft will be grounded for at least several more weeks as the aircraft manufacturer enhances software for the aircraft's anti-stall system that might have caused the deadly crashes by Lion Air in October 2018 and by Ethiopian Airlines in March. The FAA expects to receive Boeing's enhancement "over the coming weeks," after which the software will be subject to a "rigorous safety review."
Ethiopian investigators expect to release their preliminary report on the crash within the next several days. Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker on Tuesday said the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which he chairs, is investigating whether FAA inspectors lacked proper training and certification when evaluating the system.
Amid the grounding, North American carriers have adjusted their schedules:
Aeromexico: Since grounding its six Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft on March 11, the carrier has covered those flights with other aircraft from its fleet.
Air Canada: After grounding its fleet of 24 Boeing 737 Max aircraft and removing them from its schedule through at least July 1, Air Canada expects it will cover 98 percent of previously planned flying. It has substituted different aircraft on most routes, extending leases for some aircraft scheduled to leave its fleet and speeding up the intake of Airbus A321 aircraft it acquired from Wow Air. Some flights have been consolidated onto larger aircraft, some seasonal route starts have been pushed back, and partner carriers are providing extra capacity on some flights, such as a Montreal-Frankfurt flight that Lufthansa will operate during May. A few routes, including Halifax and St. John's to London Heathrow, have been suspended, but Air Canada plans to restart them when it is able.
American: American has canceled about 90 flights per day through April 24 due to the grounding of its 24 Boeing 737 Max aircraft. Cancellations include flights that were not scheduled to be serviced by Max aircraft, so the aircraft can instead cover routes that were served by the aircraft type.
Southwest: Southwest has pulled Boeing 737 Max aircraft from its flight schedules through May, Reuters reported. The carrier's fleet of 34 737 Max 8 aircraft account for less than 5 percent of its daily flights.
United: United has been communicating with customers on affected flights but said the grounding has not had a "significant impact" on operations. Max aircraft accounted for only about 40 daily flights prior to the grounding. The carrier has removed Boeing Max aircraft from
its schedule through May 9 and has contingencies in place through June 5,
according to a spokesperson.
WestJet: WestJet's 13 Max aircraft make up about 8 percent of its fleet, the largest proportion of any major North American carrier. It has reaccommodated travelers through May 3.
A research note from Cowen indicated that the longer the grounding lasts, the lower the impact it will have on carriers, as they will have had more time to adjust schedules and swap aircraft. Delta, Alaska, JetBlue, Frontier, Allegiant, Hawaiian, Spirit and Volaris do not have Boeing 737 Max aircraft in their active fleets.