Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian is urging airworthiness authorities to take a common approach in the ungrounding of the Boeing 737 MAX fleet.
“It is very important that regulators unite regarding the safety of the MAX,” Bastian said on the sidelines of IATA AGM in Seoul June 2.
“Keeping politics out of safety is important,” he stressed. “What has happened is pretty traumatic. The biggest issue with MAX is consumer confidence and more cooperation [among regulators] will enhance confidence,” Bastian said.
Delta is not a MAX customer, but has expressed strong interest in the new mid-market airplane (NMA) that Boeing is expected to launch although the timing of that program is uncertain while work continues to get the MAX back into service.
Delta needs to replace around 200 Boeing 757s and 767s within the next 10 years, Bastian said. According to the Aviation Week Network Fleet Discovery database, Delta still has 88 767-300ERs and 127 757s (including 16 757-300s).
Bastian played down any pressures to launch NMA, saying “we have time to evaluate.”
The airline is looking at other options, in particular the proposed A321XLR that Airbus may launch at the Paris Air Show and which is aimed at the NMA segment.
Delta is also still pursuing talks about a possible investment in Alitalia as another piece in its strategy to grow its group of foreign equity partners.
“I am optimistic that Delta will be successful,” Bastian said regarding a minority stake in the Italian airline which is a fellow SkyTeam Alliance partner. “There is a lot happening in the background. Hopefully we can make a decision in the next few months to move forward together.”
Alitalia is in state-supervised administration and only been able to survive because of government loans. A deadline for bids has been extended several times. European LCCs Ryanair and easyJet, having initially considered bids for Alitalia, pulled out. Lufthansa made a proposal, but it is based on concessions that the Italian government has so far not been willing to accept.
Interest in Alitalia aligns with Delta’s strategy to grow internationally, having acquired stakes in Virgin Atlantic, Air France-KLM, Aeromexico, China Eastern and Brazilian LCC GOL.
Source:ATW
