Boeing 737 MAX manufacturing issue expected to “impact” Southwest Airlines

(Reuters) – Southwest Airlines expects an ongoing Boeing 737 MAX manufacturing problem to delay some plane deliveries this year, Southwest said Friday.

“We are in discussions with Boeing to understand what that impact will be in 2023 and beyond,” the company said.

The manufacturing problem involves fittings that were incorrectly installed on the fuselage made by Spirit AeroSystems.

Southwest — which exclusively flies the 737 — initially expected to receive 100 planes from Boeing in 2023, but the company dropped that projection down to 90 jets, according to regulatory filings published by the company on March 14.

(Reporting by Valerie Insinna)