United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz remains optimistic that his company and other airlines will soon resume the use of the beleaguered Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.
With a catch.
"The first and foremost objective is to not assume everyone will want to fly, or assume everyone will get over it," Munoz said in an interview with CNBC this week as United opened a new terminal at New York's refurbished LaGuardia Airport.
Boeing 737 Max jets were involved in two crashes five months apart that killed more than 340 people, prompting the Federal Aviation Administration and aviation oversight agencies worldwide to ground the plane.
United last month extended cancellation of 737 MAX usage until at least August, and when they resume, Munoz said he won't charge passengers who want to switch flights to avoid flying on the MAX.
Boeing Chairman and CEO Dennis Muilenburg said he is fully aware of the apprehension in boarding one of the 727 MAX planes.
"We know ... that the public's confidence has been hurt by these accidents and that we have work to do to earn and re-earn the trust of the flying public, and we will do that," Muilenburg told an investor conference in New York on Wednesday. "We are taking all actions necessary to make sure that accidents like those two ... never happen again."
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