Developing – Speaking at Cowen and Co conference in NY right now:
“We’re gonna do a new airplane that will go beyond the capability of what the [A320]NEO can do.”
Update 7:46 AM PT:
“What we’ve seen so far is Airbus focused on their current customer base, which has shown some vulnerability to the CSeries. That doesn’t mean that as they get deeper in the development they’re not going to approach our customer base. I think they will. The NEO, on paper closes, the value gap that we have enjoyed on a typical cash on cash analysis, we tend to do better. And I think part of the rationale of the neo is to close that gap. Now, will that put some pressure on our margins. Yes. Maybe, but they’ve got to complete the development. We’re gonna do a new airplane. We’re not done evaluating this whole situation yet, but our current bias is to not re-engine, is to move to an all-new airplane at the end of the decade, beginning of the next decade.
“It’s our judgment that our customers will wait for us, rather than move to an airplane that will obsolete itself when they do a new airplane. I understand why they’re doing it, we haven’t seen the need for it yet. I feel pretty comfortable we can defend our customer base both because they’re not going ahead of us, they’re catching up to us and because we’re going to be doing a new airplane that will go beyond the capability of what the neo can do. I feel very good about our position there.”
Update 9:59 AM PT: Here’s my complete story on McNerney’s comments. Boeing sought to temper them a bit saying it’s “not a done deal”, but the rhetorical shift moves his individual belief on 737 replacement (as stated during the 4Q10 earnings call) to a collective opinion of the organization.
Boeing boss green-lights all-new next generation narrowbody
Boeing CEO Jim McNerney has given a rhetorical green light to replace the venerable 737, announcing the airframer intends to build a new aircraft to eclipse the re-engined Airbus A320neo, with a service entry around 2020.Speaking at the Cowen and Company Aerospace and Defense Conference in New York City, McNerney says: “We’re gonna do a new airplane. We’re not done evaluating this whole situation yet, but our current bias is to not re-engine, is to move to an all-new airplane at the end of the decade, or the beginning of the next decade.”
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This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.