LONDON (AP) — European aircraft manufacturers Airbus The company plans to show off its latest passenger jets with daily flight demonstrations at the world’s largest aviation trade show, but is stymied by ongoing safety and production crises. Rival Boeing Keep a low profile Farnborough International Air Show.
of American companies in trouble The company won’t bring any jets to the event’s aviation display, which begins Monday near London, and said ahead of the show’s opening that it remained focused on addressing U.S. regulators’ concerns and “delivering on customer commitments” rather than selling large numbers of planes.
Chief Operating Officer Stephanie Pope said Boeing was struggling with “predictable deliveries” of jets to airline customers. 737 Max jetliner That will set you back 38 per month.
“This is a transformational change and, as you know, we’ve slowed down our factories significantly to make this happen,” Pope, who is also CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, told reporters on Sunday.
Farnsborough Exhibitionare held alternately every two years, Paris Air Showis traditionally a forum for aerospace companies to showcase their latest technological developments and for manufacturers to A rush of orders An exhibition of new passenger, cargo and military aircraft. Organizers expect some 1,500 exhibitors and 80,000 visitors from 42 countries during the week-long event.
Boeing’s modest presence at this year’s show underscores the company’s continuing struggles.
Boeing Global President Brendan Nelson said in a news release that the company will “scale back its commercial aircraft displays and flight demonstrations at the show to focus on new technologies, sustainability, security and service solutions.”
The company has been in turmoil ever since. The door plug blew off An Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 crashed during a flight earlier this year, rekindling safety concerns that had subsided after two previous crashes. Max Jet 346 people died in Indonesia in 2018 and 2019, Ethiopia.
The collapse of the committee and a series of current and former employees Advance Lawsuits alleging quality control lapses and retaliation against whistleblowers have led to new government investigations. The Department of Justice has reinstated criminal fraud charges against Boeing in connection with the deadly crashes. Boeing has Plead guilty The company took the step this month as part of an agreement to install an independent monitor to oversee the company’s compliance.
Boeing’s management is in limbo as it searches for a successor. CEO David CalhounCalhoun, who is stepping down at the end of the year, apologized to the families of the victims. Tough questioning by U.S. Senators The company was sued last month over its safety record.
“Hopefully next year a new CEO will come in and improve this terrible situation, but until then people are just on the defensive and focused on doing what they can to keep the company functioning,” said Richard Aboulafia, a longtime aerospace analyst who is now a consultant with Aerodynamic Advisory Ltd. “It’s tragic and it’s a shame, but hopefully this air show will be remembered as the darkness before the dawn.”
Boeing’s “customers have been very supportive,” said Pope, a potential replacement for Calhoun, “but that doesn’t change the reality that we let them down, and that has had an impact on their business.”
“We’re a stable company,” she said.
Airbus will take part in the airshow over the town of Farnborough with its new A321XLR passenger jet, while Boeing will show off one of its F-15 fighter jets but will not be flying any passenger planes at the airshow crowd. This is in contrast to the last show in 2022, when Boeing was due to show off one of its F-15 fighter jets. Exhibited The latest 777 and 737 Max aircraft will be introduced on a press tour. Flight.
So-called static displays of aircraft parked on runways are also a big attraction for airshow visitors: Airbus will have three passenger jets owned by its airline clients on the ground, while Boeing will have just one 787, owned by Qatar Airways.
“Typically they’re there in large numbers and they take every opportunity to promote themselves and get their planes flying,” said John Strickland, an aviation analyst at JLS Consulting.
This time, Boeing “must be seen as more reflective, more focused on safety, turning things around and regaining trust and respect as a trusted manufacturer of safe, commercially operational airplanes,” Strickland said.
Despite having their wings clipped and production declining, Alaska Airlines incident Boeing was able to announce new contracts for wide-body jets. Korean Air plans to buy 20 777s and 20 787 Dreamliners, and Japan Airlines has agreed to order 10 787s, with each deal including an option for 10 Dreamliners, Boeing said. A recovery in air travel demand after the coronavirus pandemic means commercial airlines are desperate for more planes, and Boeing and Airbus are dominating the market.
Both manufacturers have already Back log Many orders take years to process. But Boeing orders DepressedThat’s helped Airbus quietly build a sales lead as the Toulouse, France-based company develops the A321XLR, a fuel-efficient plane that airlines are eyeing because it will allow them to fly cheaper narrow-body planes on longer routes.
The model is behind schedule but is on track to receive certification later this year, and already has more than 500 orders from airlines including American Airlines and Air Canada.
Also at Farnborough, air-taxi startups including Boeing’s Whisk Aero will show electric planes that will soon take to the skies, but they won’t be doing demo flights. A number of companies are working on planes that can take off and land vertically, pitching them as a sustainable way to get around densely populated cities and areas with poor public transport networks.
In a sign that flying taxis are closer to reality, German startup Lilium last week announced a deal to sell aviation conglomerate Saudia Group. Saudi Arabia The national airline has purchased 50 aircraft for an undisclosed amount, with the first to be delivered in 2026.
