Large Boeing 737 MAX customers signal caution on orders amid COVID-19

A day after Boeing received approval for its 737 MAX to fly again following a 20-month grounding, its two largest US and European customers signaled caution on their order books as they monitor demand in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. US based Southwest, Boeing's largest customer worldwide, said this week it would just take new MAX jets to replace jets it's retiring rather than grow its fleet, and on Thursday raised the prospect of scaling back its fleet due to the pandemic. “If demand is going to be persistently depressed, we can retire and not need to take airplanes as replacements,” Southwest CE Gary Kelly told journalists. When the 737 MAX was grounded globally in March 2019 following two fatal crashes, airlines canceled flights because they lacked enough airplanes to meet strong travel demand. Now many have parked jets or even gone out of business in the pandemic, creating challenges for Boeing as it tries to find homes for 737 MAX jets that are built but now lack buyers. A senior executive of Boeing's largest European customer, low-cost carrier Ryanair, said on Thursday that it is not currently looking at additional orders for the jet, but may buy more if prices fall in the wake of COVID-19.<br/>