The grounding of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft model will contribute to reducing Southwest Airlines' revenue by $150 million, equivalent to SEK 1.4 billion, in the first quarter. 

The airline, which is the world's largest low-cost airline operator, announced this on Wednesday, according to Bloomberg News.

According to Southwest, the 737 Max grounding, combined with adverse weather and reduced productivity due to contract negotiations, will lead to 9,800 flight cancellations in the first quarter.

The use of the 737 Max has been halted worldwide following the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft on March 10. There are concerns that faulty software may have contributed to the accident, and possibly also to the previous crash of a 737 Max plane operated by Lion Air in the Java Sea last fall.

Southwest Airlines, which has 34 737 Max aircraft in its fleet, was down 1.6 percent in premarket trading at 12:30 p.m.

Source: Nyhetsbyrån Direkt