Delta Air Lines Inc. has recently expressed its expectation that the delivery of its Boeing 737Max10 aircraft could be delayed until as late as 2027. This announcement comes as the planemaker faces federal safety and criminal reviews. The airline announced in July 2022 that it would purchase 100 Boeing 737 MAX 10 jets, worth about $13.5 billion at list prices. It also has options to buy another 30 and was looking to begin receiving the planes in 2025. However, Delta's Chief Executive Officer, Ed Bastian, has indicated that the delivery could be pushed back by a year or two.
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"We were already anticipating if it came in ‘25, it'd be late in the year," Bastian told Bloomberg in an interview. "My guess is it will be another year or two beyond that." Bastian also mentioned that Delta is "comfortable" with the protections it negotiated against possible delays in its contract to buy the Max 10. He declined to be more specific, according to the report. There are "several issues with the Boeing 737 Max" that need to be addressed, and the carrier is in ongoing discussions with Boeing.
Boeing has been under scrutiny since a Jan. 5 incident when a door plug blew off a 737 MAX plane in mid-flight, exposing frightened passengers to the outside air. The Federal Aviation Administration earlier this month said the agency's 737 MAX production audit into Boeing and supplier Spirit AeroSystems found multiple instances where the companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.
Delta and Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report. The delay in the delivery of the Boeing 737 Max 10 aircraft to Delta highlights the ongoing challenges faced by Boeing and the aviation industry at large.