The Boeing 737 MAX aircraft will be assembled at the company’s factory in Renton, Washington, USA, on June 25, 2024.
Jennifer Buchanan | via Reuters
The resumption is a major boost for U.S. plane makers, which have warned investors about delivery delays to China and are embroiled in another safety and quality crisis.
Boeing’s deliveries of new aircraft to China have been intermittent since 2019 after two deadly crashes of Max 8 jets and amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing over issues ranging from technology to national security.
Boeing said on July 9 that it had delivered two 777 freighters to Air China, confirming a Reuters report that deliveries of wide-body aircraft to China had resumed.
However, Chinese airlines have yet to start taking deliveries of the single-aisle MAX. Reuters reported in June that 737 MAX deliveries were scheduled to resume as early as July.
China halted most orders and deliveries of Boeing jets in 2019 after the 737 MAX was grounded worldwide.
Deliveries of wide-body planes resumed in December, while deliveries of narrow-body Max jets resumed in January.
Boeing said in its year-end 2023 filing that it has about 140 737 MAX 8 planes in inventory, including 85 for Chinese customers. Boeing delivered 22 planes to China between the start of 2024 and April 30.
The company estimated on Saturday that Chinese airlines will need a total of 8,830 new commercial aircraft by 2043.
