Boeing’s offer falls short of SpiceJet’s claim

SpiceJet’s compensation claim from Boeing has encountered rough weather, as the American aircraft maker has offered to pay only a small percentage of the Gurgaon-based airline’s claim for the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft since March 2019.

The airline wants Boeing to compensate for the loss of revenue due to grounding and delayed induction of aircraft, people aware of the matter said without disclosing the amount has demanded and the amount Boeing has offered to pay.

“While SpiceJet has claimed loss of business opportunity due to grounding of MAX as one of the main reasons for a higher claim, Boeing has categorised payment of parking charges as well as lease rentals for 13 grounded planes as compensation,” said an executive, who did not wish to be identified.

In 2017, SpiceJet had placed an order for 205 Boeing aircraft, including a large number of Boeing 737 MAX. The airline had 13 MAXs in its fleet which were grounded in March 2019. India had grounded these planes after a second Boeing 737 MAX, operated by Ethiopian Airlines, crashed due to a faulty computer system.