Adding to its long list of delays and woes, the Boeing 777X looks like it’s on track to not be on track yet again. The modernized update to the venerable but aging 777 still has a “mountain of work” ahead of it to get certified by the FAA, according to Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg at the Morgan Stanley Laguna Conference. That means its delivery flight will probably be delayed, again, as the company still can’t get out of the turbulence it’s been stuck in for the last few years.
Currently, Boeing is hoping to get the plane finally certified in 2026, fully six years later than originally planned. How far that gets pushed back depends on how big that mountain of work ends up being. It takes two to tango here: the FAA needs to sign off on the plane, and it has a bit of a testy relationship with the company at the moment. Boeing really needs to start getting these planes to airlines, since as Ortberg said, they’ve already lost several billion dollars developing it.
On the plus side, not being certified hasn’t stopped the 777X from selling well. Boeing currently has 624 of the model on order, including 84 orders just this year alone. Of course, tariffs are making the price of planes skyrocket, which might lead to lower sales. Still, Ortberg thinks the trade war can work for the company: “There’s no better way to correct the balance of trade than to buy a large number of aircraft.” I’ll get right on it.
Inching towards takeoff
The 777X would be nice to get in the air, but Boeing’s golden goose is the 737, the best-selling airliner in history. Ortberg thinks the two latest variants, the short-body 737 MAX 7 and the long-body 737 MAX 10, could get certified next year. For perspective, compared to the 777X’s 624 outstanding orders, the 737 MAX (all variants) has 4,817 outstanding orders. If the new 737 models can get to customers soon, then the 777X’s delay is really just a blip.
If it does finally get certified, the 777X will be the largest twinjet airliner in the world and the biggest commercial plane in active production. Its presence will also enable airlines to start retiring some of their older planes out of their fleets, an issue that got exacerbated by the manufacturing pause during the pandemic lockdown. It would really be pretty nice to have as an option. Should be here any day now.
