Boeing’s long-delayed 777X falling behind schedule, CEO Ortberg says
Sep. 11, 2025 at 4:16 pm
Boeing’s fifth 777X makes its final approach into Paine Field as part of its inaugural flight on Aug. 5 in Everett. (Nick Wagner / The Seattle Times)
By
Lauren Rosenblatt
Seattle Times business reporter
Boeing is falling behind schedule for its newest family of planes, the 777X, CEO Kelly Ortberg said Thursday.
The company is making progress on securing certification from the Federal Aviation Administration for the long-delayed Everett-based 777X program but, Ortberg said, Boeing is at a point in the process where it should be “burning down” its checklist with the FAA.
Instead, it still doesn’t have authorization from the regulator for a “good portion of the certification program,” Ortberg told analysts at a Morgan Stanley conference Thursday.
“We’re clearly behind our plan in getting the certification done,” Ortberg added.
The 777X family, which includes two passenger planes and one freighter, has faced years of delays since Boeing introduced the new model in 2013. Boeing needs certification from the FAA to carry passengers and cargo, and to deliver the planes to airline customers.
Once certified, the 777X family will be larger and more fuel-efficient than other widebody planes on the market, featuring wings so long that Boeing had to add foldable wingtips to allow the plane to fit into airports. It is powered by the largest jet engines ever built.
But the new family of planes has been stymied by manufacturing defects and heightened regulatory scrutiny, in part because of two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019. Following the crashes, the Department of Justice accused Boeing of misleading safety regulators about a new software system on the MAX plane.
On Thursday, Ortberg said the FAA’s certification process now is “way too slow” and he hopes to work with the regulator in “swinging the pendulum back.”
The current process is standing in the way of Boeing’s next big milestone, Ortberg continued: building an entirely new plane.
That’s partly because Boeing needs to clear the existing certification hurdles in order to deliver planes and generate the cash it needs to launch a new plane, and partly, Ortberg said, because of the slow pace.
“I can’t imagine that we can do a new airplane without having that process refined,” he said.
Ortberg started as CEO in August 2024, taking the reins from Dave Calhoun as the company was still reeling from a panel blowing off an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX earlier that year. He spent his first year at the helm focused on stabilizing production of Boeing’s existing commercial models, particularly ramping up production of the 737 MAX in Boeing’s Renton factory.
Now, seeing improvement, Ortberg said Thursday he hopes to turn his attention toward certification of new planes, including the 777X and two new MAX variants. Boeing executives have previously said the company will begin deliveries for all the new models in 2026.
The MAX variants — the 737 MAX 7 and 737 MAX 10 — have been delayed due to an issue with the plane’s engine anti-ice system. Ortberg said Thursday that Boeing is “making really good progress” and is working with the FAA on certification of a new design.
For the 777X family, the FAA granted approval for Boeing to begin official flight tests in July 2024, marking a significant step toward the long-delayed certification. But that progress stalled a month later when Boeing discovered a crack in a structural component that connects the plane’s engine to the airframe.
Sign up for Evening Brief Delivered weeknights, this email newsletter gives you a quick recap of the day's top stories and need-to-know news, as well as intriguing photos and topics to spark conversation as you wind down from your day.
Since then, Boeing has celebrated milestones in its path to 777X certification, including developing a solution to the cracks. In July, it officially began production of the newest 777 freighter. In August, it marked the first flight for its fifth 777-9 plane, the commercial variant of the 777X family slated to hit the market first.
Ortberg said Thursday that Boeing has not identified any new technical issues with the plane, adding that “both the airplane and the engine are really performing quite well.”
To cross the certification finish line, the FAA needs to grant Boeing “type inspection authorization,” or TIA.
While the regulator has approved “incremental TIAs,” Ortberg said the company has yet to achieve all the phases, meaning “we can go fly, but we can’t get the certification credit.”
Ortberg said he has asked Boeing’s new Chief Financial Officer Jay Malave to “spend some time … really looking at this schedule slip” to understand the financial impacts.
“Even a minor schedule delay on the 777 program has a pretty big financial impact,” Ortberg said.
With more than 500orders, “demand for the aircraft is fantastic,” he continued. “It’s going to be a great airplane. We’ve just got to get ourselves through this certification program and the mountain of work is still in front of us.”
Lauren Rosenblatt: 206-464-2927 or lrosenblatt@seattletimes.com. Lauren Rosenblatt is a Seattle Times business reporter covering Boeing and the aerospace industry.
seattletimes.com |
