Boeing Deliveries Delayed To China Again

Boeing aircraft deliveries to China are set to be hit with another roadblock, as Reuters reports delays are to be expected once more.

A delay follows a Chinese regulator reviewing batteries that power the crucial cockpit voice recorder. Thus, delays in Boeing’s ability to deliver its aircraft to the market persist.

No timeframe was provided for how long the reviews would take, delaying deliveries. However, the delays impacted over 100 aircraft in the inventory, with many already destined for China but unable to be delivered.

While Boeing feels the effects of an inability to deliver jets, this also affects airline customers. These airlines were meant to rely on types such as the MAX as they emerged from the pandemic. However, delays have meant this hasn’t been the case, and they’ve been short on capacity.

Boeing’s Long Wait For China

Boeing has a long history of inability to deliver aircraft to China, whether related to its problems or unrelated to the global pandemic.

Thanks to the substantial delays that have mounted, Boeing has found itself with a hefty backlog of aircraft that must be delivered. Most of these are for the 737 MAX, the always hot and always critiqued narrowbody family of aircraft.

In the last two years, Boeing has been left with tough decisions because of these delays and question marks on when aircraft will be delivered again. Many of these tough decisions relate to the manufacturer deciding if these aircraft will ultimately be delivered to other airlines that can acquire them.

Despite these question markets, Boeing still hopes to deliver the backlog to customers by the end of the year. This is an ambitious target, but executives at the manufacturer still hope to achieve it.

Deliveries of Boeing jets will be helped thanks to the recommencement of handovers only several months ago after years of the delivery processes being suspended. However, Boeing still faces an uphill battle.