Relaxed and comfortable

“It’s important to bring technology to our customers in a meaningful way,” he notes.

“The 777X and 737 MAX are good examples of this” says McNerney.

“In the case of the 777X we chose to put technology into that airplane instead of an all-new airplane…we decided to keep the fuselage and add a new wing and new engines. ” But he concedes that for the ‘middle of the market’ 757 replacement Boeing will take a more fundamental look, but will employ technology that is mature today rather than a leap ahead.

“I know there is a requirement for a 757 replacement but we haven’t precisely defined it. ” Could Boeing start with the ultimate stretch of a baseline new 737 replacement as the 757 replacement? McNerney said that “is a loaded and very good question”.

“I don’t think we quite figured that out yet and that is one of the challenges if we started big and moved down and that has always been a challenge. We are trying to think creatively, there could be configurations that are different to what airplanes look like today. ” McNerney was apparently alluding to patents for twin-aisle 180-240 seat designs taken out by Boeing in 2001 and 2009. (See ‘Mission Impossible’ feature elsewhere this issue. ) McNerney says no timeframe has been decided even for the concept.

As a strategy he said Boeing wants to avoid “a big aggregation of technology every 20 years. A lower risk is to maintain the life of platforms and bring in more technology earlier. ” On the 777X McNerney told Contrails he is very happy with the 777X development. “Yes, we are making great progress and we are introducing new automation on the current models. We are implementing some of the automation on the current model to de-risk the 777X. ”

We are building a smaller engine for a bigger airplane.

McNerney says that a key to the 777X is its composite wing which is “a fourth generation composite wing. ” He adds the other [777X] winner is the engine. “We are building a smaller engine for a bigger airplane which is a measure of the significant improvements in aerodynamics and weight of the airplane. A smaller engine flying farther with more passengers. ” “The challenge for GE is not to build a bigger engine but get substitute materials [for the engine] and their prototyping is looking very good.

We are feeling good about that and we have given ourselves time,” says McNerney.

And McNerney is relaxed about the level of 737 MAX orders (2,331) to the Airbus A320neo (3,904).

“We are feeling very good about MAX orders. We started about a year and a half late so we are behind. But if you look at similar points in time the marketshare hasn’t moved that much. Only 50 per cent of our customer base has committed so over time I don’t think you will see a marketshare shift. ” On the promised operational performance of the MAX McNerney is pleased. “I am very happy about where the MAX is. As a general statement we are very comfortable with the [performance] guarantees. ” For McNerney the only issue is for CFM being able to produce the LEAP engine “at the rate we want but it is all looking very good. ” On the volatility of fuel prices and the US dollar on the aerospace giant’s business, McNerney was circumspect saying that what impacts “our business more is profitability of airlines. ” And that airline profitability is being helped “because our products are paying back quickly for airlines. The 787 is 20 per cent more fuel-efficient and shows a reduction of 30 per cent in total operating costs. ” The 777X promises to be almost as good, asserts McNerney.

“What is driving our business isthe innovation that is giving us big leaps in capability. We are comingup with bigger leaps – it used to befive or 10 per cent. This is what is overcoming swings in fuel pricesand currencies. ” McNerney’s final comments were to the question about all-electric powered and pilotless planes. With a wry smile he said “they are pretty far out there and . . . not in my generation. ”