- According to reports, Boeing is delaying expansion of production of the 737 aircraft.
- An Alaska Airlines plane lost part of its fuselage during a flight in January.
- The FAA has given Boeing 90 days to address quality control issues with its 737 planes.
Boeing has postponed plans to ramp up production of the 737 Max after an Alaska Airlines jet lost part of its fuselage mid-flight in January.
Boeing's supply chain had previously been directed to increase production from 38 planes per month to 42 planes by February 2024 and 47 planes in August, Reuters reported on Friday. The report cited the master schedule. However, the company postponed those plans in the wake of the Alaska Airlines incident earlier this year.
On January 5, an Alaska Airlines flight from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California was forced to make an emergency landing after a door plug ripped off at about 15,000 feet. Photos and videos taken by passengers showed a gaping hole in the side of the plane when it made an emergency landing.
National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy said the incident could have been “much more tragic” if people had been sitting in chairs next to the dislocated part of the plane.
The US Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft on January 6 in response to the incident. The agency said at the time that it grounded the planes after each plane took about eight hours to complete a safety inspection.
In late January, the FAA prohibited Boeing from increasing production of all 737 Max aircraft. According to Reuters, the company's latest 737 supplier schedule shows that some expansions planned for February will take place in June.
On February 28, the FAA gave Boeing 90 days to complete a quality control plan to address quality issues identified in the post-Alaska Airlines investigation.
Boeing did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on Saturday.
