Boeing to Cut Production of 737 Max After 2 Fatal Crashes – The New York Times

“Teams are working tirelessly, advancing and testing the software, conducting non-advocate reviews and engaging regulators and customers worldwide as we proceed to final certification,” Mr. Muilenburg said. “We’re also finalizing new pilot training courses and supplementary educational material for our global Max customers.”

Boeing is now under pressure from some airlines to compensate them for the cost of the grounded jets. Norwegian Air’s chief executive said previously that he expected Boeing to “take this bill.”

The airline Garuda Indonesia asked to cancel an order for 49 Max planes last month. And on Friday, Bloomberg reported that Ethiopian Airlines was reconsidering its order for 25 additional Max planes because of the “stigma” surrounding the aircraft.

“We may reach the decision: Look, we just had a very tragic accident a few weeks ago, and customers still have the accident in their mind,” Tewolde GebreMariam, chief executive of Ethiopian Airlines, told Bloomberg. “So it will be a hard sell for us to convince our customers.”

Though the airlines have mostly been able to manage the grounding of the Max so far, the credit agency Fitch Ratings said in a note on Friday that the impacts may begin to ripple across Asia in the coming weeks as seasonal air travel picked up.

“If there is a delay in the delivery schedule of the 737 Max jets by Boeing, affected airlines may choose to either scale back their expansion plans to strengthen their balance sheets or continue to grow by leasing aircraft at increased rates,” Fitch said.

Boeing is also facing growing pressure from Washington. The Justice Department and the Transportation Department’s inspector general are investigating the design, manufacturing and certification of the Max. Lawmakers have raised questions about Boeing’s close relationship with the F.A.A., which in recent years has given aircraft makers more authority to certify their own products.