Boeing extends closing of Seattle-area plants on virus worry

Boeing decided to keep its Seattle-area commercial manufacturing hub closed indefinitely as state health officials work to contain a Covid-19 outbreak and its suppliers show signs of stress. The factories, including a hulking plant where all of the company’s wide-body jets are built, had been scheduled to reopen late Tuesday evening following an earlier two-week closure. The safety of employees and recommendations of government health authorities were among the considerations, the Chicago-based planemaker said. The pandemic injects fresh uncertainty into Boeing’s plans to restart 737 Max production, which was closed in January, about 10 months after global authorities grounded those jets following two fatal crashes. Also in flux is whether the disruption from the outbreak will stymie the company’s efforts to end the flying ban by midyear. Boeing has about 135 confirmed coronavirus cases among its global workforce. The aviation titan made the decision to shutter its Washington state facilities and ask employees to telecommute, where possible, after an employee at its Everett campus died last month. <br/>