Canadian airlines plan for grounded Boeing jet to fly again, travellers still leery

Canadian airlines are making preparations for the day when Boeing’s grounded 737 MAX jet can fly again, but one executive said work must be done to regain travellers’ trust in the US-made narrowbody involved in two deadly crashes. WestJet CEO Ed Sims said Tuesday that over 50% of people questioned by the carrier have expressed reluctance, or a lack of confidence to fly on the MAX. “There is a very major job to be done...to remind our guests of the previous safe track record and to give people confidence that the changes that have been made will make this the safest narrowbody domestic aircraft that has ever flown,” he said. The 737 MAX has been grounded worldwide since mid-March while Boeing (BA.N) updates flight control software at the center of two crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that together killed 346 people within a span of five months. North American carriers, including WestJet and rival Air Canada, are taking steps to prepare for the plane’s ungrounding, even as they scramble to meet demand with slimmer fleets. Air Canada has pulled the MAX from its schedule until Feb. 14, 2020. WestJet has taken the MAX out until Jan. 4, but is reviewing whether to extend that into February. Sims added he would fly on a planned MAX demonstration flight with media and would “happily” bring his family when the aircraft again takes to the skies. Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu told analysts on an earnings call that the carrier would await the US FAA decision to clear the aircraft before taking steps to hire pilots for its MAX fleet expansion. “We’re looking at potentially hiring up to 350 incremental pilots next year,” he said.<br/>