Ryanair plans to launch its Boeing 737 MAX aircraft services in the United Kingdom. The flights would begin this summer, Ryanair Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Eddie Wilson said on January 7, 2021.
In an interview with Newstalk radio, Wilson confirmed that Ryanair will soon be flying Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. “We will deploy those [Boeing 737 MAX – ed. note] probably initially in the UK,” Eddie Wilson said when asked whether or not Ryanair would be operating Boeing 737 MAX this summer.
In December 2020, Ryanair signed a purchase agreement with Boeing for 75 new 737 MAX 8 aircraft, which increased its firm order count from 135 to 210. “We hope to take delivery of at least 50 of these aircraft in 2021, subject to Boeing recovering its manufacturing output to deliver them,” Ryanair Group CEO Michael O’Leary said, adding that the airline will use 737 MAX aircraft to rapidly restore flights in the EU.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is yet to approve Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft for commercial passenger services. Earlier in November 2020, the European regulator signaled that it is prepared to unground 737 MAX aircraft by the end of January 2021, as it issued a Proposed Airworthiness Directive (PAD).
On November 18, 2020, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States ungrounded the Boeing 737 MAX, allowing it to enter commercial service in the country again. Three airlines are now operating the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft on commercial passenger flights: GOL Airlines, Aeromexico and American Airlines (A1G) (AAL).