Travel experts say half of customers avoid Boeing planes over safety

As many as half of passengers are deliberately avoiding flying on Boeing planes this summer, and turning to digital tools to avoid buying tickets on Boeing flights.

DailyMail.com spoke to multiple travel-sector experts who said that up to half of customers are now shunning Boeing planes in the wake of a series of safety issues.

One of the more scary incidents involved a door plug blowing out on an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 at 16,000 feet this January.

Aaron Sutherland, founder of travel company Jetsetter Lifestyle, said that there has been a ‘notable’ shift in customer sentiment around Boeing aircraft.

Sutherland said: ‘In recent months, almost 50 percent of our clientele have explicitly requested to avoid Boeing planes for both domestic and international travel.

‘While airlines regularly swap aircraft to optimize operations, these changes are often out of our control as a travel agency. 

‘However, we’ve noticed a growing trend of passengers meticulously checking the aircraft type before their flight. 

‘If it’s a Boeing, especially the 737 MAX, we often receive urgent requests to adjust travel plans, even at the last minute.’ 

Multiple models of Boeing passenger jets have face door blowouts, mid-air engine fires.

Two crashes also killed 346 people of Lion Air Flight 610 in Indonesia in 2018 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in March 2019 near the town of Bishoftu.

In a sign the industry is losing confidence, Boeing received orders for only four new planes in May and, for the second straight month, none for its best-selling 737 Max. 

Boeing faces a ‘long road’ to address safety issues, the head of the Federal Aviation Administration said this May.

In late February, FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker gave Boeing 90 days to develop a comprehensive plan to address ‘systemic quality-control issues’ and barred it from expanding 737 MAX production.

Sutherland says that passengers are particularly wary of the 737 Max which still ‘elicits fear’ after the aircraft was grounded by the FAA for 20 months up to November 2020 after the two high-profile crashes – the longest-ever grounding of a U.S. airliner.

The aircraft was recertified by the FAA in December 2020 – but in the wake of the Alaska Airlines incident (which involved a Boeing 737 Max 9), customers are wary.

Sutherland says: ‘We have several clients who adamantly refuse to fly on this model, regardless of the series or its updated safety record.’

Sutherland is CEO of Jetsetter Lifestyle, a California-based luxury travel company that curates once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

Customers are turning to flight search tools which can exclude booking on Boeing planes, particularly the 737 Max, says Hollie Mckay, Travel Expert and Vice President of Communications at HotelPlanner.

Flight search engines like Alternative Airlines allow users to exclude Boeing planes and in particular the 737 Max, says McKay – and travelers also choose airlines that are known for using Airbus models instead.

McKay said: ‘Following the crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2018 and 2019, there was a significant perception among customers that Boeing planes, especially the 737 MAX model, might be dangerous.

‘Safety concerns flared again as a series of Boeing mishaps made headline news again this year, including the door blowing out on an Alaska Airlines in early January.

‘For many, flying is already a heart-pumping experience of which the passenger has little control, and the number of Boeing incidents – which are comparatively very tiny considering how many millions of flights take place every day without a hitch – still seem like unnecessary risks when there are other options.’

But McKay says that she personally still uses Boeing Max aircraft, and has recently made four flights to Europe on Boeings.

She said: ‘ I did take note of the aircraft before boarding – something I never usually do, and the thought stuck with me until we touched down.

‘But ultimately, flying remains by far the safest mode of transportation. This is due to the stringent regulatory oversight by authorities like the FAA and ICAO, which enforce comprehensive safety standards. 

‘Aircraft undergo rigorous, regular maintenance and are equipped with advanced technologies and robust designs featuring multiple redundancies.’

In the March 2024 airworthiness directive (AD) proposal, the FAA warned Boeing of an ‘electrostatic discharge,’ or static electricity risk, near the center-wing fuel tanks.

‘The unsafe condition, if not addressed, could result in an ignition source inside the fuel tank,’ the FAA said, ‘and subsequent fire or explosion.’

The FAA specifically requested that new ‘electrical bonding’ and ‘grounding’ be installed to prevent short circuiting or ‘electrostatic discharge’ around an air intake system near the 777’s center-wing fuel tanks.

The warning was a standard procedure to address problems and does not mean that flying on the aircraft is dangerous.

That Flight SQ321 death and the FAA warning join controversies already swirling the aerospace giant and its ‘triple seven’ aircrafts.

This year has also seen Senate testimony from Boeing whistleblower Sam Salehpour who has accused Boeing of taking shortcuts when building the 777

‘I observed Boeing workers using improper and untested methods to align parts in the 777,’ Salehpour, once a quality engineer at Boeing, told Senate investigators.

‘In one instance even jumping on pieces of the airplane to get them to align.’

Pilot and CEO of The Jettly Flight Justin Crabbe says that regaining customer trust will be an ‘uphill battle’ for the company.

Customers think Boeing planes are dangerous. Many customers still doubted their safety – even after authorities cleared the planes to fly.

‘People are questioning the company’s safety culture and oversight.’