Boeing CEO sees 737 Max jetliner gaining in China

BLOOMBERG

Boeing Co’s top executive is growing confident the company can soon restore its commercial standing in China, while cautioning about a rocky path ahead as the two superpowers joust over trade and politics.
The US manufacturer is working to restart deliveries of the 737 Max, its top source of revenue, in China after a four-year halt. Over that hiatus, arch-rival Airbus SE grabbed the lead in a market that had traditionally been split evenly between the two manufacturers.
China’s home-grown planemaker, Comac, has meanwhile gained a foothold with its recently launched C919 jet.
Comac will likely evolve into a global player, but the market is large enough to support all three, Chief Executive Officer Dave Calhoun told reporters in a briefing, pointing out that Boeing has worked with China for 50 years.
“We continue to support them as they get their Maxes back in the air,” the CEO said. “And I expect things will move forward in a more constructive fashion with fits and starts in the political environment today.”
Reviving sales in China, the world’s second-largest aviation market after the US, is just one issue confronting Calhoun, who must also grapple with product strategy while repairing Boeing’s balance sheet. In his first press conference since early 2020, the CEO assessed competitive threats and the topsy-turvy market spurring airlines to lock in deliveries into the next decade. He also explained why he thinks Boeing can wait a decade to introduce its next all-new plane.
Weathering supplier disruptions and regulatory delays are a bigger concern for Boeing than clawing back market share from Airbus, Calhoun said. The Toulouse, France-based planemaker is poised to dominate the all-important narrowbody market this decade, aided by its coming A321XLR, a mid-sized jet for which Boeing has no directly competing product.
“I don’t want to suggest that we can’t do it, because I think we can,” Calhoun said of regaining market share. He attributed the lost ground that has given Airbus about 60% of the single-aisle market to a “hangover from not being able to deliver airplanes” during the 737 Max’s grounding following two fatal crashes, and Boeing’s gradual factory restart.
For now, Calhoun is focussed on returning work in Boeing’s factories to a stable, steadily rising tempo and getting the next aircraft models the company is developing — the 737-7, 737-10, 777-9 and the 777-8F air cargo hauler — through Federal Aviation Administration certification. Senior Vice President Mike Fleming said Wednesday that certification of the 737 Max 10 could slip into 2024.