WOEING: Airlines Are Cutting Flight Schedules as Boeing Delivers Fewer Jets.

Southwest Airlines said Tuesday that it would cut flight capacity and re-evaluate its financial guidance, citing lower-than-expected deliveries of Boeing jets. The carrier’s shares tumbled around 15% in afternoon trading, as the carrier also reported weaker leisure-travel demand early this year.

United Airlines is pausing pilot hiring for two months and hunting for new planes from Boeing rival Airbus to fill the gap. And Alaska Air said its plans for the year are also in flux as a result of uncertainty on Boeing deliveries.

Boeing has slowed down production of its bestselling 737 MAX jets as it faces increased scrutiny from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Justice Department. On Tuesday the airplane maker said it shipped 17 narrow-body MAX jets in February, eight fewer than it did in January and half as many as it delivered in November and December.

Plus: “‘As much as I would like those deliveries, you know, this is not a 12-month issue. This is a two-decade issue,’ [United Chief Executive Scott Kirby] said at an investor conference. ‘I’d rather Boeing do what they need to do, and I think they are now.'”

Here’s to hoping. In the meantime, Boeing is the best salesman Airbus ever had.