This week, both American Airlines and United Airlines postponed the return of Boeing 737 Max aircraft to their schedules until next year.
American Airlines now says it expects to "slowly phase in" Max aircraft beginning Jan. 16, more than a month beyond its previous projection of Dec. 3. American will use Boeing 737-800 aircraft to replace Max aircraft on flights through Jan. 6, as they have the same seat configuration. Flights on Max aircraft from Jan. 7 through Jan. 15 might be replaced with a different aircraft type, and the carrier will contact any travelers who might be affected.
United, meanwhile, has pulled the Max out of its schedule through Jan. 6. That move will cause the cancellations of about 95 flights per day in October, 93 flights per day in November, 75 flights per day in December and 56 flights per day in the first part of January. The carrier said it is "continuing to work through the schedule to try and swap and upgauge aircraft to mitigate the disruption" and said it would automatically book affected customers on alternate flights when possible.
Back in July, Southwest, the U.S.'s largest operator of Max aircraft, pulled the Max from its schedule through Jan. 5.