Boeing Co.’s disastrous start to 2024 is spilling over to airlines and their passengers as production delays exacerbate a shortage of single-aisle jets.
United Airlines Holdings Inc., Southwest Airlines Co. and Ryanair Holdings Plc are among the companies scrambling to respond to reduced deliveries from Boeing as the planemaker focuses on fixing quality lapses exposed by the Jan. 5 accident on an Alaska Airlines flight.
With the busy summer travel season in view, carriers say they’re trimming schedules and looking for alternatives to 737s they’ve already ordered, while also contending with issues afflicting narrowbodies from Airbus SE. Even Boeing seems uncertain when the planes will be ready as an army of US inspectors sift through its factories, meaning the company can’t make any firm predictions when things might return to normal.
