Boeing books first 737 MAX order since April; deliveries slump

Oct 9, 2019: Boeing secured the first converted order in months for one of its grounded 737 MAX planes, according to company data for September. The company also reported that total deliveries for the first nine months of 2019 had almost halved from a year earlier.

Regulators grounded the 737 MAX worldwide following a second fatal crash in March that killed all 157 people on board an Ethiopian Airlines plane, and is fighting to get the jet back in service later this year.

It said that an unidentified business jet customer had ordered one 737 MAX jet, with monthly data suggesting it was converted to the MAX from another variant.

Boeing also reported four apparent order conversions in favor of the MAX in April but a major tentative deal for 200 of the jets from British Airways owner IAG announced at the Paris Airshow in June, has yet to show up as a firm order.

Boeing’s net order tally, including cancellations, was a negative 84 for the first nine months of 2019, also hit by the bankruptcy of India’s Jet Airways, which resulted in Boeing removing 210 aircraft from its order backlog.