As expected, the increased scrutiny of Boeing by the FAA and the company's own internal quality checks have bogged down production and that will have a cascading effect on airlines waiting for new planes. Boeing is authorized by the FAA to make up to 38 new 737 MAX aircraft, but Reuters said it's making only about a third of that. The production rate is determined by the number of first flights of new aircraft. It reported that consulting company Cirium Ascend counted 11 maiden flights in February and 13 in March. Meanwhile, Airbus is kicking an average of 46 A320neos out the door each month.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/max-output-down-two-thirds