Aircraft
Maintenance Ops Face Unsung Effect From Max Grounding
While airlines need to perform certain upkeep on grounded airplanes such as the 737 Max, their maintenance schedules become out of sync.
Norwegian has replaced certain 737 Max services with widebodies. (Photo: Norwegian)
Norwegian has replaced certain 737 Max services with widebodies. (Photo: Norwegian)

The continued grounding of the 737 Max will affect Boeing, suppliers, and operators alike, and the longer the crisis goes on the more disruption to the industry it will cause. For the airline sector, the exposure also depends directly on the number of Max jets a particular operator has already taken in proportion to its total fleet. Even though the likes of Southwest Airlines await the return to the air of 34 grounded Max jets, the fact that it flies more than 700 airplanes—all 737NGs—no doubt mitigates the damage.