Boeing Q1 deliveries plunge amid safety concerns

April 9 (UPI) -- Deliveries of Boeing airplanes dropped during the first quarter of this year to their lowest number since midway through 2021, in the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The aerospace giant delivered 83 passenger jets during the first three months of 2024, a drop from 157 during the previous quarter and 130 planes in the first quarter of last year, the company said in a statement on its website.

Boeing delivered only 29 planes in March as the company continues to deal with the fallout from January's emergency aboard an Alaska Airlines flight that saw a "door plug" fly off the 737 Max 9 jet in mid-flight.

The plane maker eventually agreed to pay the airline $160 million as compensation for the in-air mishap.

Alaska Airlines at the time said its first quarter operation and results had been "significantly impacted" by the incident, which saw the flight return to Portland Oregon and make an emergency landing.

Following the incident, the Federal Aviation Administration increased its oversight of Boeing to include an audit of the Boeing 737-9 Max production line as well as parts suppliers for the plane in order to evaluate the company's actual compliance with approved quality control procedures.

A majority of Boeing planes delivered in the first quarter were 737s.

In February, Boeing announced delivery of about 50 of its single-aisle 737s would be delayed after the aircraft manufacturer said it was alerted of an issue by one of its suppliers.

At the end of that month, the FAA directed Boeing to develop a comprehensive plan to deal with systemic quality-control issues in order to meet non-negotiable safety standards.

The comprehensive safety action plan is due within 90 days.

Boeing executives have since said they expect the company to slow production in order to address safety concerns on passenger jet assembly lines.

However, Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun said in March he would step down as CEO in the wake of the ongoing issues, but will continue to lead the company through the year.

Despite the concerns and factoring in cancelations, Boeing in March took orders for 111 new planes, 85 of them with American Airlines for the 737 Max.

The company also delivered an additional 14 planes of various models under its defense, space and security programs.