Norwegian Air Shuttle has filed a lawsuit in which it accuses Boeing of breaching a contract over the way the manufacturer handled the production and delivery of its two products, the Boeing 737 MAX and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
“Instead of delivering what they promised, Boeing has deliberately misled and omitted information, shown gross negligence and clumsy production, and made aircraft with significantly impaired value and utility, which in the case of the MAX aircraft had tragic and fatal consequences,” stated the lawsuit, filed with the District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in the United States.
The all-Boeing operator also accused the manufacturer of “gross negligence, fraud and breach of contract,” related to Norwegian’s purchased 737 MAX and 787 aircraft.
While the company argues that Boeing lied regarding the 737 MAX, the 787 is also at the forefront of criticism. According to the lawsuit, Boeing knew that five Dreamliners that Norwegian was supposed to take in were “defective and which probably would have been out of service for maintenance at least 20% of the time,” reported local media, citing obtained court documents.
Norwegian Air Shuttle has recently canceled its remaining Boeing orders. On June 30, 2020, the low-cost carrier announced that it would ax the remaining 92 Boeing 737 MAX and five Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. Norwegian reasoned the cancelation was related to the grounding of the 737 MAX and the continuing issues of the Trent 1000 engine that powers the 787 Dreamliner. Both issues disrupted the airline’s operations and caused significant losses, according to the company’s statement.
Norwegian also pleaded for compensation from the court, as it experienced inconveniences related to the operating issues of the 737 MAX and the 787 Dreamliner.