BOEING STRIKE DISRUPTS INDIAN CARRIERS' EXPANSION PLANS

The Boeing machinist strike has stalled aircraft deliveries, directly affecting Akasa Air and Air India Express, both of which are now facing delays in their fleet expansion efforts, highlights

- AMEYA JOSHI

Boeing has largely been in the news for the wrong reason since preCOVID times. It has reached a stage where any publicity cannot be good publicity anymore. The latest in the series, which started with the global grounding of the MAX aircraft following two deadly crashes, is the strike by the machinist union. The strike began on September 13, 2024, and has continued for over a month. This adds to the problems already present at Boeing as the machinists union overwhelmingly voted for a strike, rejecting the contract which was offered. Subsequent negotiations did not go down well, with at least one case seeing Boeing directly sharing the contract details with the media as per the union and calling it the "Last and Best offer". This comes within a week of Boeing calling this contract "historic". The strike, the first in 16 years, coincides with the first full negotiation of wages in as many years, with the last two being extensions of the contract signed in 2008. About 30,000 workers in the Seattle and Portland areas have started the strike, which began at 0001 hours on Friday, September 13. Boeing put out a What to Expect page for striking workers, which clearly mentions that they would not be paid for the strike. However, the aeroplane maker did say that it hopes to work out a solution and a new contract soon.

In July this year, Boeing announced the acquisition of Spirit Aerosystems after being constantly on the radar of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for quality issues and not being allowed to increase the production rate of its planes till quality issues are fixed. Recently, Boeing’s 777X was grounded during the testing phase as issues with engine assembly came to the fore. The aircraft is already delayed for its Entry In Service (EIS), which is now expected in 2026.