(Reuters) – U.S. carrier Southwest Airlines said on Thursday it would take delivery of fewer Boeing 737 MAX planes for 2024 and had excluded the MAX 7 model, affected by certification delays, from its plans of fleet for the year.
The low-cost airline, a loyal Boeing customer, plans to have 79 MAX planes delivered this year, instead of the 85 previously planned, due to difficulties linked to the manufacturer’s supply chain and the current state of certification of the MAX 7.
“The company’s current capacity plans do not anticipate entry into service of the MAX 7 this year and are dependent on Boeing’s production capacity,” Southwest said in a statement.
However, with the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) prohibiting Boeing from increasing MAX production, some airlines could be “significantly” affected by a production freeze.
Southwest, the MAX 7’s largest customer, told Reuters last November that it expected the plane to be certified by the FAA by April, which would allow it to begin flying in October and November of this year. year.
On Thursday, the airline said it had accelerated a small number of MAX 8 orders and changed three firm 2025 MAX 7 orders to three firm 2024 MAX 8 orders.
Dallas-based Southwest reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $219 million (€201 million), linked to an operating expense of $426 million due to an increase in the ratification bonus for pilots under a new contract.
Total revenue for the quarter increased 10.5% to $6.82 billion.
(Reporting Shivansh Tiwary and Abhijith Ganapavaram in Bangalore; Stéphanie Hamel)
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