United Airlines Seeks Smaller Boeing Jets, Eyes Airbus Order Amid 737 Max Safety and Delay Concerns

United Airlines CEO asked Boeing to stop building 737 Max 10 jets that the airline had ordered and instead build Max 9s due to extended Max 10 certification delays.

United is considering ordering Airbus A321 jets if the economics work out, otherwise will order more Max 9s.

In January, United said Boeing likely won't meet contractual obligations on many Max 10 orders.

A January incident of a door plug blowing out of a Max 9 sparked fresh safety concerns about the Max 10 certification.

After a recent FAA audit faulting numerous processes, Boeing announced adding more compliance checks and audits to reduce 737 quality problems.