Emirates boss says Boeing conveying 'cautious optimism', with 777X delivery expected by 2027
Emirates Airline 's president Tim Clark said that Boeing has struck a tone of 'cautious optimism' during its meetings with the US plane maker, with expectations that the long-delayed 777X will be delivered by early 2027.
The Dubai-based airline could receive its first 777X wide-body between the third or fourth quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027, and is getting 'clearer messages' from Boeing on that delivery programme, he said on the sidelines of the International Air Transport Association (Iata) annual meeting in New Delhi on Sunday.
'We've engaged with the senior management of Boeing recently and they seem cautiously optimistic,' Mr Clark told reporters in the Indian capital.
Emirates is still awaiting delivery of the Boeing 777X after the US plane maker faced a series of delays on that programme since 2020. With ongoing delays in new aircraft deliveries, Emirates will now put 219 aircraft through a full cabin refresh at a total investment of $5 billion in its retrofit programme, according to its latest annual financial report.
The airline has added the first Airbus A350-900 to its fleet but held off from ordering the larger A350-1000 variant as Mr Clark remains critical of Rolls-Royce's engine performance in the Gulf's harsh and hot climate conditions.
Meanwhile, Emirates, a long-standing champion of the Airbus A380, will keep the double-decker in its fleet until the end of the next decade, Mr Clark said. This comes as it seeks to extend the lifespan of the aircraft with a lack of a clear alternative as the 777X is yet to be certified, while the A350-1000's engines are yet to prove their durability for the Gulf's operating conditions.
Iata's 81st annual meeting of airline chiefs, with IndiGo as the host carrier, is taking place amid the turbulence of global trade tensions and difficulties around meeting the industry's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.
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