Boeing to Suspend Production of 737 MAX

Boeing has announced that it will suspend production of the troubled 737 MAX family of aircraft in January 2020.

Since the 737 MAX was grounded in March 2019, Boeing has continued to build new airplanes and there are now approximately 400 planes in storage.

All 189 passengers and crew on a Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX 8 died when it crashed about 13 minutes after take off from Soekarno–Hatta International Airport in Jakarta on 29 October 2018. That devastating tragedy was followed by an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashing just minutes after take off on 8 March 2019 killing all 157 people on board.

"We have previously stated that we would continually evaluate our production plans should the MAX grounding continue longer than we expected," said Boeing in a statement issued on Monday. "As a result of this ongoing evaluation, we have decided to prioritize the delivery of stored aircraft and temporarily suspend production on the 737 program beginning next month. We believe this decision is least disruptive to maintaining long-term production system and supply chain health."

The company has said that affected employees will either continue 737-related work or will be temporarily assigned to other teams in Puget Sound.

Boeing said that the decision to stop production has been "driven by a number of factors, including the extension of certification into 2020, the uncertainty about the timing and conditions of return to service and global training approvals, and the importance of ensuring that we can prioritize the delivery of stored aircraft. We will continue to assess our progress towards return to service milestones and make determinations about resuming production and deliveries accordingly."

Boeing is expected to disclose the financial impact of the production suspension when it releases its Q4 2019 earnings in late January.

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