United Airlines forecasts first-quarter loss due to Boeing 737 Max 9 grounding

• The FAA grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft earlier this month after a door plug blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight.
• United said it expects a quarterly loss of at least 35 cents a share due to the grounding.
• The first-quarter warning from United comes after a relatively strong holiday period.

United Airlines on Monday forecast a first-quarter loss due to the Federal Aviation Administration’s grounding of Boeing 737 Max 9 planes this month after a part blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight operated with that type of aircraft.

United expects to post an adjusted loss of between 35 cents and 85 cents a share for the first three months of the year, it said in a filing. The forecast is the first indication for investors of the financial damage caused by the FAA’s grounding of the planes, issued a day after the incident on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 on Jan. 5.

United has 79 of the aircraft in its fleet, more than any other carrier, followed by Alaska….