Boeing has about 400 completed aircraft sitting in storage, and said that focusing on delivering those aircraft would be "least disruptive" to its long-term plans. Staff will either continue working on the 737 or receive temporary assignments with other teams.

There's little doubt this production stop will hurt Boeing's bottom line. As the company acknowledged, though, safety takes priority here. The software mistakes that led to the 737 Max's two crashes cost hundreds of lives -- the solution has to be completely trustworthy for regulators, airlines and the public. Whatever financial hit Boeing takes is a small price to pay if it prevents another tragedy.