Airbus sold 796 A320neo planes in 2019, more than eleven times Boeing’s tally of 737 order of 69 aircraft.
The overall gross orders for Boeing in 2019 stood at 246 aircraft, down from 1090 a year before. The jet-maker’s previous low was way back in 2009, when recession had set in, and it managed to bag only 263 orders.
It received only 69 unit orders for the 737 narrow-body jet airliner last year, a steep decrease of 91.7% from 837 orders it received for the same plane in 2018, according to data gathered by Learnbonds.com.
The sharp decrease in Boeing’s aircraft orders could have been fueled by safety concerns following two fatal accidents in 2018 involving Boeing 737 MAX planes. Both crashes were linked to a piece of software that Boeing had installed on the 737 MAX known as the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System. The new automated flight control system could cause unintended nosedives, and was reportedly omitted from crew manuals and training.
After Airbus unveiled its A320neo, Boeing dropped the idea of replacing 737s with new 787 planes. The company instead opted to equip the former with more powerful engines, new wings, and other improvements, creating the 737 MAX series. In November 2019, Boeing rolled out 737 MAX plane, speculated to be the last for the 737 family, which began in 1965.
The company is currently working to get a recertification for its MAX planes, while they continue to remain grounded from over a year now.
