American Airlines just cancelled Boeing 737 Max flights until April, as Boeing's timeline for the jet's return is thrown into further doubt (AAL, BA)

David Slotnick

December 12, 2019 9:39 PM

American Airlines

American Airlines said on Thursday that it was cancelling flights on the Boeing 737 Max until at least April 7, 2020.

The announcement comes hours after the FAA confirmed that the troubled jet would not be cleared to fly before 2020, as Boeing had previously insisted it would be. In November, the plane maker suggested that the plane was moving closer to recertification, and that deliveries of new jets could resume as soon as this month, something that the FAA has since ruled out .

American had previously pulled the jet from its schedule through the first week of March, along with Southwest and United. Before that, American, following Boeing's optimistic guidance, had planned to begin reintroducing the jet to service on January 16.

The airline said that if the jet is certified sooner, it would run flights "for American team members and invited guests only" before April 7.

As the jet's grounding continues to drag on, airlines have been forced to reassess their 2020 capacity plans. Along with the jets currently in their fleets being grounded, deliveries of new units have been delayed until the grounding is lifted.

Boeing took a $5 billion charge in the second quarter to compensate airline customers. Southwest, which currently has the largest 737 Max fleet, reached an initial compensation agreement with the Chicago-based plane maker this week.

The 737 Max, the latest generation of Boeing's best-selling plane, has been grounded since March 2019 after crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia killed 346 people.

Do you work for Boeing, or one of the airlines affected by the Boeing 737 Max grounding? Contact this reporter at dslotnick@businessinsider.com .

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