American Airlines is extending cancellations of flights scheduled on the Boeing 737 Max through 2 November, matching moves by other major US airlines while regulators have set no date on when those aircraft could be cleared to return to service.
American says it "remains confident that impending software updates to the Boeing 737 Max, along with the new training elements Boeing is developing in coordination with our union partners, will lead to re-certification of the aircraft this year".
The Fort Worth-based carrier had previously cancelled 737 Max flights through 3 September.
"Approximately 115 flights per day will be cancelled through Nov. 2", the airline says. "Our reservations and sales teams will continue to work closely with customers who are impacted by these cancellations."
Extended cancellations by US airlines make it seem increasingly likely that the aircraft will not return to service until 2020. United Airlines on 12 July extended the cancellation of flights on Max aircraft through 3 November, which it estimated will result in cancellation of 5,000 flights over two months. Southwest Airlines in June extended cancellations of flights on its Max fleet through 1 October, but its chief executive Gary Kelly said in an internal memo that he expects cancellations beyond October because of additional problems identified during US Federal Aviation Administration flight tests.
FAA pilots in June uncovered a data processing issue on Max aircraft that affected their ability to perform the procedure to counteract a flight control error that has been linked with two fatal crashes of Max aircraft.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
