On April 4, a spokesperson for Alaska Airlines announced that the company had received about $160 million in funding from Boeing as initial compensation for the grounding of its fleet of 65 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft. The spokesperson further said that more additional compensation from Boeing is expected in the future, but the details still need to be kept secret.
On January 5, 2024, Alaska Airlines flight AS1282 operated by a Boeing 737MAX9 passenger aircraft, when performing a flight mission from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California, shortly after takeoff, a cabin door in the 26th row of the porthole on the left side of the fuselage, somehow, its temper suddenly broke out, regardless of the safety of all passengers on the plane, it didn't even shout 123, and after a loud roar, it fell directly from a height of more than 4,000 meters.
Although there were no casualties in the volley of the cabin door of Alaska Airlines flight AS1282, it immediately caused an uproar around the world because it exposed a huge hole in Boeing's manufacturing and quality control system. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also quickly stepped in and announced the grounding of all 171 Boeing 737MAX 9s of the same model in the United States.
The FAA's grounding order covers all Boeing 737MAX 9s in Alaska Airlines' fleet, grounding a total of 65 aircraft, including those involved in the AS1282 crash. "We lost approximately $160 million in pretax profit in the first quarter due to the grounding of all of our Boeing 737-9 MAX in a note to investors," the company said in a note to investors. ”
Meanwhile, three passengers sitting near the missing door filed a lawsuit against Alaska Airlines for up to $1 billion because the door of Flight AS1282 fell off. Although the case has not yet been heard in a local court, Boeing has taken the lead in issuing a statement claiming that Alaska Airlines is innocent and should not pay for the door falling out.
Since Alaska Airlines shouldn't have paid for it, Boeing should have stepped forward and paid for it! How much Boeing paid for the three passengers has not been reported in the newspapers, and it is clear that all this is a secret.
In fact, Alaska Airlines' losses were much more than $160 million, as it was only a direct economic loss for the first quarter. There were also consequential losses, including damage to the Alaska Airlines brand and goodwill following the incident, increased insurance and risk management costs, and reduced ticket sales due to concerns about the safety of Alaska Airlines.
Alaska Airlines is not the only airline grounded, but also United Airlines, which has 79 Boeing 737MAX 9s, and other important 737 MAX customers such as Aeromexico and Copa Airlines. Everyone is waiting for Boeing to compensate for the grounding!
It seems that the end of Boeing's troubles is far from over. To use a Chinese idiom, it is "hard to return". The aircraft maker's problems have snowballed in recent years. From the safety of the Boeing 737 MAX family, to the worldwide grounding, to various investigations and lawsuits, Boeing's image and business have been greatly affected.
While Boeing is trying to solve the problem and restore its reputation, the road ahead is still difficult and tortuous. On the one hand, they need to invest enormous resources to improve aircraft design, improve production and assembly quality, and ensure safety performance, and on the other hand, they also have to deal with pressure from various parties, including regulators, airlines, the media, and the public.
In addition, Boeing faces challenges from competitors. Civil aircraft manufacturers such as Airbus in Europe and COMAC in China are actively expanding their market share, and Boeing must come up with better products and services if it wants to regain its leading position. This process undoubtedly takes time and effort, and may even require more real money.