Carsten Spohr, CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa, finds the delays “very annoying”. picture alliance/dpa | Sven Hoppe
The CEO of Europe’s largest airline described Boeing’s delivery delays as “annoying” but expressed optimism.
The plane maker has slowed production to focus on safety after the Alaska Airlines disaster.
Boeing faces a difficult dilemma: Should the company prioritize speed or safety?
Carsten Spohr, CEO of Lufthansa, is the second airline boss in recent days to comment on Boeing’s delivery delays. In an interview with the “Neue Zürcher Zeitung” published on Saturday, Spohr was asked about the aircraft manufacturer’s delivery delays.
“This is extremely annoying and costs us a lot, a lot of money,” he tells the NZZ. “However, I am sure that Boeing will get the problems under control,” he continues, according to the newspaper, adding: “The industry needs two strong providers. Everyone has an interest in Boeing being able to build great aircraft more reliably again soon.”
In terms of revenue, Lufthansa is the largest airline in Europe and the fourth largest in the world. Spohr’s comments came just days after Emirates CEO Sheikh Ahmad ibn Said Al Maktoum also raised concerns about Boeing.
Boeing put pressure on
In an interview with US news channel CNBC, Al Maktoum called on Boeing to “turn the corner”. He stressed: “The company should apply a lot of pressure to ensure that it delivers to customers what it promised.”
Boeing has struggled to slow production to avoid quality control errors since the Alaska Airlines breakdown in January. However, this leads to delays in the delivery of aircraft. After announcing his resignation, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said the company needed to slow production to focus on safety.
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Aircraft manufacturer responds to criticism
Following Al Maktoum’s comments, Boeing Global president Brendan Nelson told TV news channel Sky Arabia: “We have slowed production to ensure we can bring strength and quality to our supply chains. This is to stabilize the supply chains and strengthen our production system.”
Other customers such as Ryanair and United Airlines have already expressed their displeasure with the delays, so United is replacing its plans for the Boeing 737 Max 10 with some Airbus A321neos.
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