Boeing has resumed assembly of its 737 MAX aircraft in Renton, Wash., about one month following the resolution of a seven-week strike by about 33,000 union workers at the aircraft builder’s operations in Washington and Oregon. The restart of production had become something of a curiosity to outside observers, but a Boeing spokesperson confirmed that operations were underway at Renton this week.
Assembly of Boeing 777 aircraft at Everett, Wash., is expected to resume in the near future.
“We used our Safety Management System to create program-specific plans to identify, evaluate, and mitigate potential risks at each stage of the restart,” the spokesperson explained to Reuters. “Over the last several weeks, we dedicated time toward training and certification, ensuring parts and tools are ready, and completing work on airplanes in inventory to prepare for the resumption of production at pre-work stoppage levels.”
The 737 MAX is Boeing’s most popular commercial aircraft, and critical to its financial recovery. It has orders outstanding for about 4,200 737 MAX jets, and completing and delivering those aircraft is necessary for Boeing to return to profitability.
However, due to production and supply-chain complications, the manufacturer has struggled to increase its output despite high demand for new aircraft.
Boeing’s intention to increase the 737 MAX assembly rate to 42 aircraft/month during 2024, and higher toward 56 aircraft/month in 2025, was stymied by the arrival of Federal Aviation Administration overseers in January of this year, first as part of its inquiry into a side panel blow-out in January, and then as part of the agency’s determination to ensure that aircraft quality and safety standards are properly maintained by Boeing.
