Boeing delays, Alaska and Spirit's paydays, and United's rough landing: Airline news roundup
Boeing’s continued scrutiny yielded an investigation that shed some light on its convoluted manufacturing processes. Alaska Airlines got a big check from Boeing for the door plug blowout that initiated all that scrutiny. And Spirit will get some money for engine troubles that plagued its Airbus planes. Meanwhile, the post office has a new plane partner.
Take a moment to catch up on what’s been happening in the world of airlines.
A timeline of United Airlines’ very bumpy March — mostly involving Boeing planes
United Airlines had a very hard March. Its planes kept having safety incidents. There were 16 in the U.S., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. For the most part, nobody was injured. But it can’t feel great to have to reassure your customers that flying on your planes is perfectly safe. Plus, the company recently told employees that the FAA will be ramping up scrutiny of the carrier.
United Airlines wants pilots to take unpaid time off because of Boeing’s delayed planes
Boeing’s 737 Max mess is causing even more headaches for United Airlines. As the carrier waits longer and longer for its long-awaited new plane orders, it is asking its pilots to take unpaid time off because the manufacturer has yet to deliver the jets United needs to refresh its aging fleet.
UPS is replacing FedEx as the post office’s plane ride of choice
After months of negotiations to renew its contract as primary air carrier for the United States Postal Service, FedEx announced that this will be its last year doing so. UPS will be stepping in to provide the service instead.
Spirit Airlines will get paid up to $200 million — all to not fly its planes
It turns out that Boeing isn’t the only aerospace manufacturer giving airlines headaches. On Friday, Spirit told investors that it had reached an agreement with the engine supplier for its Airbus planes that will credit the carrier for planes it can’t fly because of a parts flaw. Spirit expects that the credits will be worth somewhere between $150 million and $200 million.
The Boeing 737 Max 9 that had a door plug blowout was more than a month behind schedule
It’s becoming a little bit clearer how Boeing’s 737 Max mess got to be as bad as it is.
Boeing is paying Alaska Airlines $160 million for the 737 Max door plug blowout
Alaska Airlines doesn’t report earnings for a couple more weeks, but in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Thursday it gave investors a quick good news-bad news heads up.