Boeing expects to keep losing money for a while because of its 737 Max troubles. Its planes heading for China are stuck in regulatory limbo. But at least it has some money to splash on its flying car subsidiary. Plus: American Airlines flight attendants decry low salaries as labor negotiations heat up.
Take a moment to catch up on what’s been happening in the world of airlines.
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Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary says that his airline’s customers in Europe aren’t feeling good about the economy, and they’re buying fewer plane tickets as a result.
Boeing announced Tuesday that it will be spending CAD 95 million ($70 million) on further developing tech at its Wisk autonomous electric vertical take off and landing subsidiary. The money is part of a CAD 240 million ($175 million) spending spree focused on Boeing operations at the Aerospace Development Centre in Montreal, Quebec’s new Espace Aéro Innovation Zone.
On top of all the other problems that Boeing has been dealing with after a piece of fuselage broke off an Alaska Airlines-operated 737 Max 9 back in January, a lot of its airline customers have been upset at how long they’ve been waiting on planes they ordered. Boeing’s public order backlog says it has more than 6,000 jetliners to get out the door. Yes, a lot of orders is generally a good thing because it eventually turns into lots of revenue — but at least one customer has already moved to lease planes from Airbus, the planemaker’s biggest rival, because they ran out of patience.
Boeing has hit another delay with its CST-100 Starliner spacecraft. This one is indefinite. The cause is the same as the last couple of delays: a leak of helium from the craft’s service module.
Flight attendants looking to work for American Airlines should not expect to make a lot of money doing so. A typical employment letter says that the starting salary is $27,315, CNN reports. In Texas, where American Airlines is headquartered, that pay would qualify a single-parent and child household for food stamps. A second child would drive their earnings below the poverty line.
Boeing can’t deliver planes to China. Reuters reports that the company’s planes are stuck in delays because of inspections from the country’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC).
JetBlue Airways is seeking an arrangement with British Airways that could disrupt a relationship the U.K. carrier already has with American Airlines. Air travel news website PaxEx.Aero reports that JetBlue wants to start a code-sharing agreement with British Airways.
Boeing’s Chief Financial Officer Brian West just said that the 737 Max cash burn will continue for a while. Speaking at the Wolfe Research Global Transportation & Industrials Conference on Thursday, he said that the company has more or less written off much of 2024.
