China Eastern’s 737-800 flying again four weeks after crash
China Eastern Airlines has begun flying Boeing 737-800 jets again, about four weeks after a deadly crash that killed 132 passengers and crew. The flights resumed Sunday Apr. 17.
China Eastern had grounded its fleet of 737-800 jets shortly after the crash as a precaution. Aviation safety regulators found flight data recorders in the days following the incident and the crash investigation is ongoing. There is still no definitive word on what caused the accident.
Investors, however, can take the resumption of Boeing 737-800 flights as a sign that the issue causing the March 21 crash isn’t something affecting multiple jets.
Boeing 737 model jets have been flying since the 1960s. The 737-800 is part of Boeing’s so-called next generation, or NG, family of 737 jets. Those entered service in the mid-1990s and have an excellent safety record. More than 6,000 NG model jets have been delivered over time.
The 737-800 model jets are not so-called MAX model jets. MAX jets are the 737 generation launched after the NG family. The MAX was grounded worldwide between March 2019 and November 2020 following two deadly crashes inside of five months.
MAX memories might be why Boeing stock has been a little weaker than the market since the China Eastern crash. Since then, Boeing stock has fallen about 6%. The S&P 500 is off about 2% over the same span. A basket of aerospace supplier stocks has gained about 2%, on average, over the same span.
Boeing stock Monday wasn’t really reacting to the news of flight resumption. Shares are down a little, by about 0.2%, in premarket trading at $181.57 a share. That drop mirrors the market. S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were off 0.4% and 0.2%, respectively.
Along with extra caution, China Eastern didn’t need to rush any planes back into service. New Chinese Covid lockdowns have hurt demand for air travel. China Eastern air traffic dropped about 69% year over year in March. Domestic traffic fell more than 70%. International traffic fell about 16% year over year.
More crash details could be coming in late April or May when safety regulators release a preliminary crash report.
By Al Root at dowjones.com