The one flown to Dubai, the 777-9, is the larger one. Really truly massive.īoeing plans to make two variants of the 777X. “They’re being more reflective on what they do and how they do it.” Photo by David Slotnick/The Points Guy “As a result of what happened with the MAX, the regulators are being, just like Boeing is, more reflective on how they approach certification,” Fleming said in a press briefing on Sunday. It was the first time it had left the United States, where four prototypes of the 777X have accumulated over 1,700 of flight testing hours, a little less than half the approximately 3,500 flight hours the original 777 and the 787 Dreamliner underwent before receiving FAA certification.Īlthough there have been numerous reasons for the delays, one appears to be increased regulatory scrutiny following the two 737 MAX crashes that killed a total of 346 people.
Still, the appearance in Dubai represented a major stepping stone for the aircraft type.
Want more airline-specific news? Sign up for TPG’s free new biweekly Aviation newsletter! Emirates president Tim Clark has suggested that the airline is anticipating that date to slide further, but Boeing commercial senior vice president Mike Fleming affirmed the 2023 target in Dubai on Sunday.
The program, which was originally expected to be delivered to the first customer in 2020, has suffered myriad delays and its first delivery is now expected at the end of 2023. The 777X first flew in January 2020, shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic threw the airline and aircraft industries into havoc. Boeing’s newest wide-body made its global debut on Sunday at the Dubai Airshow.