Boeing Suffers 355 MAX Cancellations In First Half 2020

***Boeing’s best-selling jet for operators’ favour

Sixty cancellations of Boeing’s 737 Max last month mean the plane maker has now lost 355 orders for its troubled jet in the first half of 2020.

Boeing confirmed on Tuesday that June’s cancellations had come from a number of aircraft lessors, including Aviation Capital, Avolon and BOC Aviation. European airline Blue Air and two other unidentified customers also cancelled Max orders.

Only two weeks ago Boeing began flight testing its grounded 737 MAX in an attempt to get the jet certified and flying again.

Customers’ frustration with the grounding of the jet combined with the coronavirus crisis and subsequent collapse in travel demand has seen Boeing’s best-selling jet struggle to keep favour with operators.

Boeing’s deliveries for the first half of 2020 also fell by 71 per cent to 70 planes due to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis. June deliveries amounted to 10 aircraft, compared to just four in May.

As of the end of June, Boeing’s gross orders for 2020 so far sat at 59 planes following an order for a 767 freighter from FedEx.

“Our commercial airplane deliveries in the second quarter reflect the significant impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on our customers and our operations that included a shutdown of our commercial airplane production for several weeks,” said Greg Smith, Boeing executive vice president of enterprise operations, chief financial officer and interim leader of communications.

Smith said that Boeing will work with its customers on specific timing and adjustment to deliveries.

“We continue to closely monitor the commercial marketplace by staying very engaged with our customers around the globe to fully understand short term and long term requirements,” he said.

“All of this is informing current and future production rates and any further adjustments as needed to balance supply and demand going forward.”