Boeing focused on 'transparency' at Dubai Airshow as Emirates awaits 777X

Plane maker executive says company is concentrating on customer engagement at the biennial expo

A Boeing 777-9 on display at a previous Dubai Airshow. Pawan Singh / The National

Boeing will focus on being as transparent as possible with its customers about its plans at this week's Dubai Airshow, especially regarding the delayed 777X that Emirates is expecting.

The biennial air expo for the US plane maker will be less about order announcements and more about customer engagement, said Stephanie Pope, the chief executive of its Commercial Airplanes unit.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, chairman and chief executive of Emirates airline and group, and president Tim Clark have been “incredible” partners and are “iconic” figures in innovation for the aviation industry, for Boeing and specifically for the design of the 777 programme, she said.

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“Our goal is to be transparent with our customers and walk them through every detail of where we are in the [certification]. We have been doing that, we'll continue to be doing that and we'll be doing that with [Emirates] while we're here as well,” Ms Pope said.

Emirates, the biggest buyer of the 777X wide-body plane, does not know when in 2027 it will receive its first delivery, Mr Clark told The National last week.

“It is unacceptable to me for any of our customers to be surprised, and our focus is to be as transparent as possible with our customers,” Ms Pope said.

Boeing has not seen any contractual cancellations of the plane, which is now delayed by seven years.

“We were working through with every individual customer … overall, the customers still believe in the airplane. They want the airplane. They're obviously very disappointed in the schedule,” Ms Pope said.

Boeing's technical teams are meeting with airline customers on a weekly or monthly basis to update them on how plans for 777X are progressing. “While they're disappointed, the support remains very, very strong,” Ms Pope said.

Ms Pope also said it will focus on stabilising its production rate before stepping up the tempo next year, amid its emphasis on a culture of safety and quality following years of production issues.

“If we go up [in rate] and we're not ready, we cause more issues than it's worth,” Ms Pope said. “Getting it right at pace is better than going fast.”

US regulator the Federal Aviation Administration had recently given Boeing the go-ahead to increase the rate of its 737 narrow-body model to 42 units a month, up from 38.

“When we're ready, we'll go up to the next rate increase: on the 787, we'll be looking to go to 10 [units a month] and on 737 we'll be looking to go to 47 and then we'll get to those rates and we'll stabilise and then we'll progress from there,” she said.

Asked when Boeing might reach the next mark of 47 a month for the 737 and 10 for the 787 Dreamliner, Ms Pope said: “I cannot put a definition on it … we'll go up in rate when the system is ready to go up in rate.”

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Culture change

Boeing has been transforming its work culture with a focus on safety, quality and transparency after a series of crises including two 737 Max crashes and a door-panel blowing off in mid-air during a flight.

“Boeing is a different company. I think all companies have to learn from their past. And I hope what you see emerging is a very humble company that's proud of their past, but have learnt from their mistakes,” Ms Pope said.

“Boeing has been a leader in innovation and we don't plan to walk away from that.”