Boeing has so many finished 737 MAX aircraft that it can't deliver that they are running out of space to park them. Employees at the Renton factory are being asked to park elsewhere, as the paperweight aircraft slowly take over their parking spots.
It is a sad reminder of the position that Boeing is in, and how regular employees are being affected by the 737 MAX grounding.
What are the details?
The Boeing 737 MAX series has been grounded since two aircraft crashed earlier this year, killing all onboard. All 737 MAXs in the world have been grounded, with some stranded at various international airports around the globe. These aircraft are not allowed to fly anywhere until Boeing is able to prove that these aircraft are safe again.
How long this process will take is unknown, as the world scrutinizes the aircraft and the fixes Boeing is rolling out.
As the cause of the crash is software related not hardware, Boeing is still building the plane, albeit at a reduced rate of 42 per month. Normally, once they have completed a 737 MAX, it is flown to the customer's hub airport for delivery somewhere in the world. But Boeing is unable to deliver these aircraft to their customers until flight approval is confirmed by the FAA.
So where do they put their completed aircraft? Having run out of space in hangars and assigned aircraft parking, Boeing are turning to the employee car park!
Boeing has run out of room
According to Huffpost, Boeing has run out of room at the airport to store these aircraft. As such, they have had to slowly take over various car parks around the facility and store the aircraft back to back.
“We are using resources across the Boeing enterprise during the pause in 737 MAX deliveries,†spokesman Paul Bergman said in an emailed statement to Huffpost, “including our facilities in Puget Sound, Boeing San Antonio and at Moses Lake in Grant County, Washington. "
There are over 100 737 MAX aircraft currently complete and awaiting delivery, according to a report from Bloomberg, and the factory is still producing them at 42 a month. What will happen when Boeing runs out of room remains to be seen. Overall, Boeing has 500 737 MAX aircraft grounded around the world.
Which airlines have the most aircraft in waiting?
Of the airlines who operate the plane, who has suffered the most from the 737 MAX grounding?
- Southwest has the most grounded 737 MAX aircraft, with 23 active aircraft taken offline by the grounding.
- TUI Travel has several 737 MAX aircraft sitting at the factory waiting to be delivered, which would have been very useful for the European summer season.
- Icelandair has at least three undelivered 737 MAX aircraft sitting in the Washington rain and not running their Iceland to Manchester route (they have had to swap it for a Q400 Turboprop).
Some sources are stating that this 737 MAX issue has already cost Boeing over $1 Billion USD.
What do you think? Is Boeing running out of room to store these aircraft?