First 737 MAX delivered to China after three years

The first Boeing 737 MAX bound for China left Boeing’s plant on Monday, March 13, a clear sign that the model is closer to returning to commercial flights in Chinese skies after a three-year hiatus.

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As reported by the South China Morning Post, the aircraft was en route to the manufacturer’s Zhoushan completion plant, used for the installation of interiors. The newspaper said the trip would take several days, with several stops for refueling. The plant opened in December 2018, just months before China suspended operations of the model.

See more: 737 MAX return to Chinese skies imminent.

«All indications are that this will be the first 737 MAX delivery to China since March 2019. Historically, this country has accounted for around 17% of Boeing’s sales,» Jefferies analysts noted. China was the first country to ground the 737 MAX after the Ethiopian Airlines crash. It is also currently the largest market in which the aircraft has not returned to commercial service.

In early December, China’s aviation regulator gave the airlines a list of corrections needed to allow the model to return to commercial flights. With this, it was hoped that the return of the 737 MAX to Chinese skies would take place soon.

However, so far only test flights have been carried out. This has delayed the delivery of more than 100 units already built, which are at Boeing’s U.S. facility. Boeing CEO David Calhoun indicated in January that his company was «preparing to deliver the planes» in the first quarter.

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Chinese airlines, meanwhile, are in no rush to add 737 MAXs because of falling domestic demand amid a new wave of coronavirus cases. «There is less urgency to add capacity,» an industry source told Reuters.