Boeing Max crisis forces airlines to cut flights, pause hiring, CEOs say

Boeing's latest Max crisis is forcing some of its biggest customers to rethink their growth plans this year — and possibly beyond, several airline CEOs said Tuesday.

Their comments highlight how Boeing's top buyers have felt the effects of its problems: snowballing quality control issues, a slow increase of output and certification of new aircraft that is running years behind schedule.

Southwest Airlines, which only flies Boeing 737s, trimmed its 2024 capacity forecast and said it was reevaluating its 2024 financial guidance, citing fewer Boeing deliveries than it previously expected this year: 46 Boeing 737 Max planes, down from 79.

"Boeing needs to become a better company and the deliveries will follow that," Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said at a JPMorgan industry conference Tuesday.

Alaska Airlines said Tuesday that its 2024 capacity estimates are "in flux due to uncertainty around the timing of aircraft deliveries as a result of increased Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Justice scrutiny on Boeing and its operations."

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said at the JPMorgan conference on Tuesday that the carrier has asked Boeing to stop building it Max 10 planes, an aircraft that hasn't yet been certified by the FAA, and produce more Max 9s, which are flying already.

"It's impossible to say when the Max 10 is going to get certified," Kirby said. In January, Kirby said the airline would build a fleet plan without the Max 10 because of the delays.

On Friday, United told staff that it would have to pause pilot hiring this spring because new Boeing planes are arriving late, CNBC reported.

The frustration from airline bosses has been building in recent months since Boeing's latest crisis stemmed from a door