Business
United suspends a route due to the Boeing 737 Max ground support
From September 3, United ( UAL ) will temporarily stop service between downtown Chicago and Leon, a city in central Mexico. It currently offers a daily round-trip flight between cities.
The carrier said the suspension would "help mitigate problems resulting from the grounding of the Max aircraft." United has 14 Boeing 737 Max 9 jets in its fleet.
United will continue to serve Leon from Houston, where it operates four daily flights.
Chicago to Leon route does not use a Boeing ( BA ) 737 Max, but a smaller regional jet called Embraer 1[ads1]75. To compensate for the loss of its 737 Max aircraft, United needs to redirect other aircraft to maintain service.
United is the second US airline to stop or cancel a route because of the problem. The American announced earlier that it was canceling a direct return trip between Dallas and Oakland, California.
Earlier this month, United said it was buying 19 used Boeing 737-700 aircraft to maintain capacity when the 737 Max ground strike hit its fifth month. It will be forced to cancel flights until at least the beginning of November due to ground support.
The 737 Max grounding also harms United's rivals.
Southwest Airlines ( LUV ) previously announced that it will cease operations at Newark Liberty International Airport in the fall due to ground support. The airline explained that the decision was to "mitigate damage and optimize our aircraft" to other more profitable cities. Southwest has 34 of the 737 Max aircraft in its fleet, most of any American airline.
American Airlines ( AAL ) said it will make a profit of $ 400 million here due to the extended grounding of 737 Max. The airline, which has 24 Max flights, announced that it will extend the cancellations until November 2.
Boeing warned last week that it may need to slow down or temporarily halt 737 Max production because of the grounding. The company has continued to build 737 Max, its best-selling jet, but at a slower pace.
The aircraft has been grounded since mid-March due to two fatalities that killed more than 300 people.
