Boeing 737 MAX Lands In China After 5 Years Of Import Freeze

The safety bans on the MAX jets have been removed, however, new deliveries of the aircraft remained on hold since early 2019 when matters became more tense between the US and China

China’s approval is expected to help the US aircraft manufacturer, which has been affected by the recent fallout when a cabin panel blew out mid-air on a 737 MAX 9 jet operated by Alaska Airlines

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After 2019, the first Boeing 737 MAXjet was delivered to a Chinese airline on Saturday when it landed in the country. This development marked an end to the nearly five-year import freeze on the plane manufacturer’s most profitable aircraft and foreshadowed the possible delivery of the backlog of dozens of completed aircraft pending with the maker to China, media reports stated.

The Boeing 737 MAX 8 departed Seattle Boeing field in Washington state on Wednesday, reported Reuters. China was the first nation that grounded the MAX jets after two MAX 8 accidents happened in 2018 and 2019 which ended up killing about 350 people. The country allowed Boeing last month to resume the deliveries of its aircraft to local customers. 

The safety bans on the MAX jets have been removed, however, new deliveries of the aircraft remained on hold since early 2019 when matters became more tense between the US and China about issues from technology to national security.

The report noted that China’s approval would come as a boost to the US aircraft manufacturer, which has been affected by the recent fallout when a cabin panel blew out mid-air on a 737 MAX 9 jet operated by Alaska Airlines. Further, the aircraft maker was also barred by the US Federal Aviation Administration from increasing production of its narrowbody planes. Currently, no Chinese airlines operate the MAX 9 aircraft. However, according to aviation data provider, Cirium, the airlines have at least 209 MAX planes on order from Boeing.

Earlier in October, Boeing said that 85 out of the 250 finished MAX planes the manufacturer had in its inventory were on hold for customers in China. The report added that more jets were being held for the Chinese customers but owing to the import freeze, the manufacturer remarketed 55 of the aircraft to other customers. 

It noted that the US aviation regulator’s unprecedented intervention in production schedules could further postpone the deliveries of new planes to airlines and cause issues for suppliers already suffering from the earlier MAX crisis and the pandemic. 

However, the report stated that if Boeing allows MAX imports, China should not be affected by the production issues as the Chinese customers would receive dozens of planes standing in line for delivery. The data from Cirium further said that Chinese airlines are estimated to receive delivery of 64 MAX 8 jets in 2024 and about 58 in 2025. 

Rob Morris, head of global consultancy at Ascend by Cirium, said, “Our data indicates that every single one of these expected (2024) deliveries has already flown and is in Boeing's current production inventory. There is potential for a significant number of these aircraft to be delivered.”