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<p>Boeing will cut production of its troubled 737 Max airliner this month, underscoring the growing financial risk it faces the longer that its best-selling plane remains grounded after two deadly crashes.</p><p>The company said Friday that starting in mid-April it will cut production of the plane to 42 from 52 planes per month so it can focus its attention on fixing the flight-control software that has been implicated in the crashes.</p><p>The move was not a complete surprise. Boeing had already suspended deliveries of the Max last month after regulators around the world grounded the jet.</p><p>Preliminary reports into accidents in Indonesia and Ethiopia found that faulty sensor readings erroneously triggered an anti-stall system that pushed the plane&#8217;s nose down. Pilots of each plane struggled in vain to regain control over the automated system.</p><p>In all, 346 people died in the crashes. Boeing faces a growing number of lawsuits filed by families of the victims.</p><p>Boeing also announced it is creating a special board committee to review airplane design and development.</p><p>The announcement to cut production comes after Boeing acknowledged that a second software issue has emerged that needs fixing on the Max &#8212; a discovery that explained why the aircraft maker had pushed back its ambitious schedule for getting the planes back in the air.</p><p>A Boeing spokesman called it a &#8220;relatively minor issue&#8221; and said the plane maker already has a fix in the works. He said the latest issue is not part of flight-control software called MCAS that Boeing has been working to upgrade since the first crash.</p><p>Chairman and CEO Dennis Muilenburg described the production cut as temporary and a response to the suspension of Max deliveries.</p><p>Boeing has delivered fewer than 400 Max jets but has a backlog of more than 4,600 unfilled orders. The Chicago-based company had hoped to expand Max production this year to 57 planes a month.</p><p>Indonesia&#8217;s Garuda Airlines has said it will cancel an order for 49 Max jets. Other airlines, including Lion Air, whose Max 8 crashed off the coast of Indonesia on Oct. 29, have raised the possibility of canceling.</p><p>A Boeing official said Friday&#8217;s announcement about cutting production was not due to potential cancellations. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because Boeing does not publicly discuss those details.</p><p>In a statement, Muilenburg said the reduction was designed to keep a healthy production system and maintain current employment &#8212; in effect, slowing down production now to avoid a deeper cut later, if fixing the plane takes longer than expected.</p><p>Analysts say the absence of deliveries will eat into Boeing&#8217;s cash flow because it gets most of the cost of a plane upon delivery.</p><p>Boeing declined to provide figures, but undelivered Max jets have been stacking up at its Renton, Washington, assembly plant.</p><p>Airlines that operate the Max will be squeezed the longer the planes are grounded, particularly if the interruption extends into the peak summer travel season.</p><p>They could buy used 737s, but that would be costly because the comparably sized Boeing 737-800 was very popular and in short supply even before the Max problems, according to Jim Williams, publisher of Airfax, a newsletter that tracks transactions involving commercial aircraft.</p><p>Williams said that if the Max grounding appears likely to extend into summer it will cause airlines to explore short-term leases, which could push lease rates higher, something that airline analysts say is already happening.</p><p>Boeing shares closed at $391.93, down $3.93. In after-hours after news of the production cut, they slipped another $8.98, or 2.3%, to $382.85. </p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/web1_122590932-c9c01e35b3644beeafe9e869b16762ae.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">In this March 13 photo a worker stands on a platform near a Boeing 737 MAX 8 airplane being built for TUI Group at Boeing Co.&#8217;s Renton Assembly Plant in Renton, Wash. Boeing is cutting production of its grounded Max airliner this month to focus on fixing flight-control software and getting the planes back in the air.  </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/web1_122590932-c9c01e35b3644beeafe9e869b16762ae.jpg</photo0><caption0>In this March 13 photo a worker stands on a platform near a Boeing 737 MAX 8 airplane being built for TUI Group at Boeing Co.&#8217;s Renton Assembly Plant in Renton, Wash. Boeing is cutting production of its grounded Max airliner this month to focus on fixing flight-control software and getting the planes back in the air.  </caption0><photoCredit0>Ted S. Warren | AP file photo </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By David Koenig</p><p>Associated Press</p></bylineMeta></div>

Boeing cutting 737 Max production rate