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DB Schenker cuts logistics jobs tied to Boeing 737 MAX

A fuselage for a 737 MAX airliner on a train car outside the Boeing plant in Renton, Wash. (Photo Credit: Shutterstock)

DB Schenker, the freight transportation and contract logistics arm of German rail operator Deutsche Bahn AG, is the latest company to feel the downstream effects of the shutdown of Boeing Co.’s 737 MAX production line.

Schenker Inc. in Wichita, Kansas, notified the state this week that it plans to lay off 255 workers, according to a notice posted on the Department of Commerce’s website.

The Schenker workers provided logistics and supply chain management services at the Spirit Aerosystems facility in the city. Spirit Aerosystems makes fuselages and other components for the 737 MAX, which has been grounded by aviation regulators since March because of technology defects implicated in two deadly crashes. Spirit previously announced it was eliminating about 2,800 positions at the plant and more than 130 jobs at two facilities in Oklahoma. Boeing (NYSE: BA) accounts for more than 50% of Spirit’s business.

Large companies are required to give 60 days advance notice of layoffs involving more than 50 workers.


Boeing has a vast supply chain and vendors are beginning to feel a cash pinch as Boeing stops receiving shipments and making payments. Boeing is expected to compensate some suppliers for losses or provide other assistance to ensure they are ready to start producing again once the Federal Aviation Administration certifies the MAX to fly again.

Boeing this week said it doesn’t expect approval to come until midyear, but new CEO David Calhoun on Wednesday said the aerospace giant would slowly restart production weeks before authorities give the green light to resume service..

The Wichita Eagle first reported the DB Schenker layoffs.

Meanwhile, airlines are slashing their schedules for the 737 MAX through at least June and rebooking passengers on other flights, often using aircraft they planned to retire.


Eric Kulisch

Eric is the Supply Chain and Air Cargo Editor at FreightWaves. An award-winning business journalist with extensive experience covering the logistics sector, Eric spent nearly two years as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Automotive News, where he focused on regulatory and policy issues surrounding autonomous vehicles, mobility, fuel economy and safety. He has won two regional Gold Medals and a Silver Medal from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for government and trade coverage, and news analysis. He was voted best for feature writing and commentary in the Trade/Newsletter category by the D.C. Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He won Environmental Journalist of the Year from the Seahorse Freight Association in 2014 and was the group's 2013 Supply Chain Journalist of the Year. In December 2022, he was voted runner up for Air Cargo Journalist by the Seahorse Freight Association. As associate editor at American Shipper Magazine for more than a decade, he wrote about trade, freight transportation and supply chains. Eric is based in Portland, Oregon. He can be reached for comments and tips at [email protected]