The top executive at United Airlines threatened to shun Boeing after the carrier’s fleet of Max 9 aircraft was grounded in the wake of the near-disastrous Alaska Airlines door blowout.
“I think the Max 9 grounding is probably the straw that broke the camel’s back for us,” United CEO Scott Kirby told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday morning.
Kirby lamented the fact that he envisions a five-year delay — which he calls “best case” scenario — for the rollout of the 737 Max 10, the latest version of the plane that has yet to be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration.
“We’re going to at least build a plan that doesn’t have the Max 10 in it.”
Kirby later said United would not cancel the jets, just remove them from internal plans.
Kirby’s public comments come after people familiar with the matter told Reuters this month United had…