Southwest and Boeing have reached an agreement under which
Boeing will compensate the airline for a portion of the financial losses it has
incurred due to the grounding of the 737 Max.
Southwest did not disclose how much Boeing has agreed to
pay, but the carrier did say it will pay out $125 million of the settlement
money to employees. The money will be distributed as part of the carrier's 2019
employee profit-sharing.
Boeing recorded a $5.6 billion charge against earnings in
the second quarter for anticipated payments to airlines hurt by the Max
grounding. Southwest was operating 34 Max jets when the plane was grounded in
March following the second of two crashes that killed a combined 346 people.
The carrier had been slated to take 41 more Max deliveries this year.
Through September, the Max grounding had cost Southwest $435
million, CEO Gary Kelly said during the company's October earnings call.
American Airlines, the second-largest Max operator in the U.S.,
has said that grounding will cost it an estimated $540 million this year.