More than 10,000 passengers on Canada’s two largest airlines had their travel plans disrupted Friday as Boeing Co.’s 737 Max jetliners remain grounded pending an investigation into the Ethiopian Airlines fatal crash last weekend.
Air Canada, which suspended its annual financial guidance on Friday to account for the grounding and Boeing’s decision to suspend deliveries of the upgraded 737s, typically carries 9,000 to 12,000 people daily on about 75 Boeing 737 Max flights to places including spring break destinations in the Caribbean and Hawaii.
It’s difficult to predict how long the planes will be mothballed. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration ordered the Boeing 737 Max fleet grounded pending further investigation, with authorities in France expected to begin an analysis of the recovered black box on Friday. Several investigators from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board are in France to assist with downloading and analyzing flight data and cockpit voice recordings. Such investigations can take weeks or months.