• 

  Boeing

  Stock Code:

  BA

  Date Founded:

  1916-07-15

  CEO:

  Dave Calhoun

  Headquarters Location:

  Chicago, USA

  Key Product Lines:

  Boeing 737, Boeing 747, Boeing 757, Boeing 767, Boeing 777, Boeing 787

  Business Type:

  Planemaker

The Boeing 737 MAX program is gradually getting back on track, with the company predicting an increase in output in the coming months. The two tragic MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 within months of each other led to a 20-month grounding of the type. But with airlines becoming comfortable with the type again, Boeing foresees an uptick in the MAX output to meet the demand.

31 planes a month

Boeing is hopeful of ramping up production of its 737 MAX airplanes in the second quarter as it looks to push out the thousands of unfilled orders of the type. Last month, the US plane manufacturer released its first-quarter results, detailing several key figures and plans, including revenue, 787 Dreamliner certification plans, and delivery targets.

Among several striking figures present in the report were also projections about the production of the 737 MAX airplanes. The report was hopeful of increasing the output of the MAX planes in the coming months as airlines around the world get ready to expand operations. The report stated,

“Boeing has nearly completed the global safe return to service of the 737 MAX and the fleet has flown more than one million total flight hours since late 2020. The 737 production rate continues to increase and is expected to increase to 31 airplanes per month during the second quarter.”

Further increase

Boeing’s projection of 30+ MAX deliveries isn’t an overnight development. In fact, the planemaker plans to increase the figure to more than 40 by the end of 2023. According to a Reuters report published in March, two people familiar with the matter said that Boeing has preliminary plans to boost production of the 737 MAX to around 47 per month by the end of next year.

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In January, Boeing said it was working to clear an inventory of 335 MAX airplanes that had piled up following two fatal crashes of the jet and the resulting grounding for 20 months. It estimated most of those jets would be delivered by the end of 2023.

With COVID loosening its grip worldwide and many airlines looking to explore options for narrowbody fleet development, both Airbus and Boeing have been pitching their aircraft aggressively by offering lucrative deals.

However, it remains to be seen whether the global supply-chain industry, which took a massive beating during the peak of the pandemic, will be robust enough to meet Boeing’s aggressive production estimates.

4000+ unfilled orders

According to the data released by Boeing, it has 4,138 unfilled orders for the MAX family of aircraft (including the yet-to-be certified MAX 10) as of March 31st, 2022. Airlines from across the world are waiting to induct the type into their fleet following the successful recertification of the aircraft.

In late January, Chief Financial Officer Brian West said the 737 program was pushing out planes at a rate of 27 per month and was on track to reach 31 per month "fairly soon." Sources revealed to Reuters that Boeing was preparing to nearly double production by the end of 2023.

The planemaker plans to increase to around 38 narrowbody jets monthly during the first half of 2023 and reach about 47 jets per month in the second half of 2023.

With a commitment to deliver these many planes, here’s hoping that Boeing lives up to its projections in the months to come.

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Source: Reuters