Boeing, Airbus cut production

Boeing and rival Airbus have cut production as the worldwide economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic slashed demand for air travel, forcing carriers to eliminate flights and defer or reduce orders for new planes.

Planespotter, a tracking service, said Boeing delivered 30 planes through February, including four military versions of commercial planes, and 12 more planes last month. The aircraft manufacturer is expected to release delivery information this week.

Avolon Holdings, a China-based leasing company, last week canceled its order for 75 MAX jets and delayed delivery for others.

The MAX, Boeing's best-selling jet, has been grounded worldwide since March 2019 following crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed a total of 346 passengers and crew.

In January, the company temporarily halted production of the 737 MAX, its top-selling plane.

Airbus hoped to fill the gap with the A320, its single-aisle, twin-engine competitor to MAX, but also was caught in the economic downdraft and recently announced plans to cut production by about a third after booking 21 net orders in March and delivering 36 planes.

There will be no immediate turnaround for Boeing.

Preliminary findings issued by Democrats on the House Transportation Committee said engineering mistakes and a "culture of concealment" plus lax federal oversight led to the two fatal crashes of the MAX.

The report, based on five hearings in the last 12 months, said Boeing sought to avoid the expense of ground-simulator training and failed to adequately inform pilot of the automated anti-stall device blamed for the crashes.

But the plane flew safely throughout the world prior to the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia.

Boeing hopes the MAX will be recertified for commercial service this summer, but the Federal Aviation Administration said there is no deadline to get the plane back in the air.

Last week, Boeing said it planned to suspend production of the wide-body 787 Dreamliner in South Carolina due to the coronavirus outbreak.

In response to the economic slowdown, Boeing said it may cut about 10 percent of its 160,000 employees worldwide.

Boeing last week announced plans to stop paying about 30,000 production workers in Washington state after it previously extended to 10 days from five the amount of paid leave available after the production suspension. Until production resumes, workers can use vacation and sick leave and will continue to receive medical coverage.

The company also said it would offer voluntary buyouts to its workforce as it struggles to cut expenses.