In the past week, the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing has experienced a "roller coaster" of days. Nearly a month after the 737 Max 9 aircraft crashed its door, the company is experiencing a week of turmoil that has affected its production and R&D schedules, which has severely tested Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun for his ability and confidence.
In just eight days, Boeing has experienced several major events.
First, on January 24, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the suspension of production plans for the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. "We will not agree to any request from Boeing to expand production, nor will we approve an increase in the 737 MAX production line until we confirm that the quality control issues identified during this process have been resolved," said FAA Director General Mike Whitake. "The FAA's decision has seriously affected Boeing's "cash cow" product, the 737 MAX aircraft, and it can be said that it is extremely detrimental to Boeing's long-term development strategy.
Second, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth, chairman of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee's Aviation Safety Subcommittee, recently said that she asked Boeing to withdraw the waiver request during a meeting with Boeing CEO Calhoun. One of the concerns she raised was that the anti-icing system could overheat and cause the engine nacelle to "crack and fall off." Boeing said on January 29 that it had notified the FAA that it would withdraw its request for a time-limited exemption related to the MAX 7 engine inlet de-icing system. The move could extend the time it takes for its MAX 7 aircraft to be certified and put into service. Boeing had planned to get the MAX 7 certified in 2024.
Third, Boeing also faces possible skepticism and resistance from its mega-customer, United Airlines. Recently, United CEO Scott Kirby expressed his dissatisfaction with Boeing, saying that he will build a new fleet plan that does not include MAX. There are ** reports that Kirby has approached Airbus due to problems with Boeing, hoping to expand the order for the A321NEO aircraft to replace the MAX 10 aircraft order. United's CEO's speech will not only have a "demonstration effect" on marketing this major customer's aircraft purchase orders, but may also have a "demonstration effect" that will influence other airlines or aircraft lessors to buy Boeing aircraft.
Industry experts say these negative developments are becoming a key test of Boeing's management's ability to overcome the crisis. However, considering that Boeing has been able to successfully deal with the negative impact of the MAX plane crash before, it should not be a problem to successfully deal with these negative events this time.
Although Boeing is currently far behind Airbus in the field of passenger aircraft, the United States is still strong on the whole by virtue of its strong industrial base and the advantages of the aviation industry chain, and I believe that Boeing can tide over the difficulties. After all, Boeing and Airbus are fully competitive, which will be more beneficial to airlines and customers.