Boeing takes 'Max'imum swing at Airbus

Boeing is set to receive orders and commitments worth $30 billion for the stretched Max 10 upgrade of the 737 workhorse, as its first new jet in almost four years counters Airbus SE’s headstart at the largest end of the single-aisle aircraft market.
 

The biggest 737 variant is set to get more than 240 orders from at least 10 different airlines, Boeing said at the launch announcement on Monday. The US planemaker is confident the model can carve out sales and stem customer defections to the Airbus A321neo, which has racked up a considerable sales lead since being launched three years ago and still has room for upgrades.
 

“We think the timing’s just right,” Boeing Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenberg said in an interview with Bloomberg TV. “Max 8 and Max 9 continue to be at the heart of the market. The Max 10 is going to add” to a portfolio that boasts a production backlog of seven years.
 

The Max 10 will seat as many as 230 passengers, roughly matching its European rival while burning 5 percent less fuel thanks to a lighter construction, Boeing says. 

United Airlines, Indonesia’s Lion Mentari Airlines and SpiceJet are among a clutch of carriers that may place contracts at the expo, Bloomberg News reported this month, citing people familiar with the negotiations. The Max 10, which will be Boeing’s first new model since the unveiling of the 777X series at the Dubai Air Show in 2013, will be 5 1/2 feet (1.68 metres) longer than the $119.2 million Max 9, currently the biggest member of the re-engined 737 family, which was launched alongside the Max 7 and 8 in 2011.