Boeing’s 737 Max is making a comeback after two crashes that killed a total of 346 people in late 2018 and early last year. Ireland’s Ryanair, a major European carrier, has ordered 75 of the planes, which had been grounded since March 2019, the two companies announced on Thursday.
The order — estimated at more than $7 billion — comes just two weeks after the Federal Aviation Administration cleared the 737 Max to resume passenger service — and as the coronavirus pandemic has sharply curtailed airline passenger demand.
“I can’t tell you how confident we are in the safety of this aircraft,” Ryanair Group CEO Michael O’Leary said at a signing ceremony in Washington. “This is the most scrutinized, most audited aircraft in history.”
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