Boeing is in the initial phase of creating a new single-aisle aircraft to potentially succeed the 737 MAX, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal, citing informed sources.
Reuters has not yet verified this report. Rolls-Royce chose not to comment, and Boeing has not replied to Reuters’ request for a statement.
The 737 MAX, which launched in 2017, was grounded worldwide in 2019 after two tragic crashes claimed 346 lives, severely impacting Boeing’s profits and leading to lawsuits, investigations, and a criminal inquiry by the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted the grounding in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently, the FAA announced it would allow Boeing to issue airworthiness certificates for certain 737 MAX jets starting this week. This authority was revoked in 2019 following the second deadly crash of the model in Ethiopia.
Earlier this year, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg met with Rolls-Royce Holdings officials in the UK to discuss a new engine for the aircraft, as per the WSJ report.
The U.S. aircraft maker is also working on the flight deck design for a new narrow-body jet, the report mentions, noting that the project is still in early planning stages with no final decisions made.
Boeing informed the WSJ that its recovery plan is progressing well, with priorities including delivering approximately 6,000 backlogged commercial planes and certifying previously announced models.
Nonetheless, Boeing continues to face regulatory challenges.
In early 2024, the FAA set a production limit of 38 737 MAX planes per month after a mid-air cabin panel incident on a new Alaska Airlines jet, which was discovered to lack four bolts.
This incident led the U.S. Justice Department, under President Joe Biden, to initiate a criminal investigation, declaring Boeing in violation of a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement after misleading the FAA during the 737 MAX certification process.
