Company shares fell 8% this Monday (8th January) on the NY Stock Exchange as a reaction to the suspension of operations of the 737 MAX 9 after an incident on an Alaska Airlines flight
A Boeing lost US$ 12.1 billion in market value in just 1 day with the strong negative reaction of investors to the new crisis involving the company's planes. The North American manufacturer closed the trading session this Monday (8 January 2024) valued at R$ 138.5 billion. Until last Friday (January 5), it was worth US$ 150.6 billion.
Boeing shares fell 8% on the New York Stock Exchange this Monday (Jan 8), at US$ 229 per share. On the 6th, the share price had closed at US$ 249. The market's fear is due to the suspension of operations of the 737 MAX 9 model, determined by the United States aviation agency on Saturday (Jan 6) and which affects 171 jets around the world for aircraft inspections.
The decision was motivated by the incident during a Alaska Airlines registered on the 6th (5.jan). An explosion caused one of the plane's side doors to eject, causing depressurization in mid-flight. US authorities are investigating the causes. The door that fell down was only found this Monday.
Video circulating on social media shows the interior of the plane and a hole on the left side. In the images, it is possible to see what appears to be an emergency exit coming loose. According to Alaska Airlines, the flight returned safely to Portland. On board were 171 passengers and 6 crew. No one was seriously injured.
Watch the video that shows the plane without part of the fuselage (1min14s):
The incident was recorded when the plane was at around 16,000 feet (4.9 km) and just 10 minutes into the flight. For American investigators who began an investigation into the causes of the incident, due to the conditions of the incident, it was a “miracle” everything didn't end in a tragedy.
In the configuration used by Alaska Airlines, the additional exit door (which on other companies is used as an emergency exit) is permanently disabled. No one was sitting in the 2 seats next to the door that exploded, leaving a hole in the plane's fuselage.
PROBLEM HISTORY
The incident on the Alaska Airlines flight is just the latest in a series of problems and fatal accidents to affect the Boeing 737 MAX. The model was launched in 2011 by the North American manufacturer as a new generation of the successful 737, one of the most used by airlines in the world.
The MAX came with a promise of 20% fuel savings and greater seat availability. Boeing has already launched 4 versions of the model:
- 737 MAX 7 – maximum 172 passengers
- 737 MAX 8 – maximum 210 passengers
- 737 MAX 9 – maximum 220 passengers
- 737 MAX 10 – maximum 230 passengers
The only version of the 737 MAX that is used by a Brazilian company is the 8. Gol Linhas Aéreas It has 40 model aircraft in its fleet. The company has an order for at least 30 MAX 10 jets, which should only be delivered from 2025, according to the contractual schedule.
The 3rd version (MAX 8) collects more security questions. In 2018 and 2019, 2 accidents involving aircraft of this model were recorded, which killed a total of 346 people. They were:
- 1st fall: registered in October 2018, in Indonesia, leaving 189 dead;
- 2nd fall: recorded in March 2019, in Ethiopia, killing 157 people.
Because of this, hundreds of planes of this model around the world were banned from flying for more than 1 and a half years while inspections and investigations were carried out to identify the problems.
In September 2020, the report of a US Congressional investigation concluded that “competitive pressure, design flaws and a culture of cover-up” by Boeing, in addition to FAA regulation “fundamentally flawed” caused the tragedies.
#Boeing #loses #US12 #billion #market #day
