United said Friday it is extending the cancellation of Boeing 737 MAX flights by another month until Dec. 19 as the jets remain grounded worldwide following two fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia in the past year. Boeing has said it hopes to receive regulatory approval for updated flight control software at the center of both crashes in October, but it could take a month or two for airlines to train pilots on the new software and prepare the jets for commercial flight after sitting idle for months. As the grounding that began in mid-March has dragged on, airlines that added the fuel-efficient, single-aisle MAX to their fleets in the past two years have had to cancel thousands of monthly flights, eating into their profits. United had previously pulled its 14 737 MAX jets from its flight schedule through early November. Without the MAX, the carrier said it expects to cancel about 2,800 flights in November and 1,700 through Dec. 19. Among other US airlines that operate the MAX, Southwest has cancelled flights into early January due to the grounding, while American Airlines Group has cancelled through early November, saying it believes it can fly the jets by the holidays. While the three airlines’ MAX jets accounted for only a fraction of their entire fleet at the time of the grounding, the impact on their schedules has intensified as deliveries of dozens of new orders remain frozen until the planes are approved to fly again.<br/>
star
Air China is ordering 35 of the Chinese-built Comac ARJ21-700 twinjet, under a deal it values at $1.33b. Delivery of the aircraft is scheduled to take place in stages from 2020 to 2024, the flag carrier states. Air China adds that it has negotiated a "large price concession" which means the actual price will be lower that the catalogue figure. The aircraft will be used to expand the main fleet or those of its subsidiaries, although it has not specified which operators will use the ARJ21s. It says the transaction, approved during aboard meeting, will not have any "significant impact" on its cash flow or business operations. Acquisition of the aircraft will increase the overall group capacity by just over 1%, it adds.<br/>