Ryanair “quite upset” with ongoing B737 MAX delays

Ryanair Holdings is “quite upset” with Boeing and does not “necessarily believe” the manufacturer’s assertion that its B737-8-200 will start deliveries by the end of the month, Chief Executive Michael O’Leary said during a quarterly earnings presentation. “We are now being told the first delivery will be in late May. I am not sure we necessarily believe that. As the management team in Seattle continues to mismanage that process I think there is a real risk we might not see any of these aircraft in advance of summer 2021,” O’Leary stressed. The extended-capacity variant of the B737-8 was certified by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in late March 2021. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) validated the type certificate in early April, theoretically paving the way for the commencement of deliveries. The Irish low-cost carrier initially hoped to receive the first units by the end of April 2021. In its quarterly earnings release, Ryanair Holdings said the first B737-8-200 delivery remained formally scheduled for the end of May with a total of 60 due before the peak of the summer season. Ryanair is one of only two customers for the higher-capacity MAX 8 variant alongside Viet Nam’s VietJetAir (VJ, Hanoi). However, the Irish holding is a much larger customer with 210 units on firm order from Boeing while VietJetAir has only twenty-eight on order. While Ryanair Holdings has yet to specify where it will place its B737-8-200s insofar as specific group units are concerned, at least six of the early deliveries will be operated by Poland’s Buzz. Some aircraft are also expected to be operated by Ryanair UK and Malta Air. Although Ryanair Holdings does not have firm orders for any other B737 MAX aircraft, the group’s chief financial officer, Neil Sorahan, said it was still in talks with Boeing about an order for B737-10s. He stressed that in line with past orders placed by Ryanair, the potential deal would be sizeable, but underlined that the two parties were “not quite there on price yet”.