Ryanair Blames 737 Max Delays For Cutting Flights, Jobs

Feeling the heat from the delay in the return of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft, budget carrier Ryanair said Wednesday it will cut flights and trim jobs until the troubled plane is able to return to service.

The 737 Max has been grounded since March after two separate, fatal crashes killed a total of 346 passengers and crew.

In a statement, Ryanair said the flight cuts, job losses and suspended operations at airports in Nuremberg, Germany, and

Stockholm Skavsta were “solely due to delivery delays. We are continuing to work with Boeing, our people, our unions and our affected airports to minimize these capacity cuts and job losses,” Ryanair said.

A spokeswoman told Reuters the company had no further comment.

Ryanair has 210 Boeing Max 737 planes on order. The airline cut its traffic forecast to 156 million passengers for the year to March 31, 2021 from 157 million; that was after taking a $4.9 billion chargeoff in the second quarter.

Boeing was hoping to have the 737 Max re-certified by the Federal Aviation Administration this month but has yet to receive the coveted approval.