MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Boeing to drastically cut production of the 737; no lifting of grounding order expected soon

Production will be cut to 42 airplanes per month from 52 starting mid-April, the company said in a statement, without giving an end-date

Boeing said on Friday it plans to cut its monthly 737 aircraft production by nearly 20% in the wake of two deadly crashes, signaling it does not expect aviation authorities to allow the plane back in the air anytime soon.

Deliveries of Boeing's best-selling aircraft were frozen after a global grounding of the narrow-body model following the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet on Mar 10, killing all 157 people onboard.

Production will be cut to 42 airplanes per month from 52 starting mid-April, the company said in a statement, without giving an end-date.

US and airline officials said they now believe the plane could be grounded for at least two months, but an even longer grounding is a serious possibility.

The crash in Ethiopia and the crash of a Lion Air plane in Indonesia last October that killed all 189 people on board have left the world's largest plane-maker in crisis.

Chief executive officer Dennis Muilenburg said on Friday the company now knows that a chain of events caused both disasters, with erroneous activation of so-called MCAS anti-stall software “a common link” between the two.

Boeing said it would not reduce jobs at the new production rate and will work to minimize the financial impact.

The company's board will establish a committee to review how the company designs and develops airplanes, Muilenburg said. The group will “recommend improvements to our policies and procedures” for its 737 MAX and other airplane programs.

Boeing said it continues to make progress on a 737 MAX software update to prevent further accidents.