The American corporation Boeing plans to create a new narrow-body aircraft to replace the 737 MAX model, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources.
The 737 MAX aircraft was put into service in 2017, but its flights worldwide were suspended in 2019 following two aviation disasters.
According to the newspaper, this year Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg met with representatives of Rolls-Royce Holdings in the UK, where they discussed a new engine for the aircraft. In the civil aviation segment, he appointed a new head of product development, who previously worked on creating a new type of aircraft.
One of the WSJ sources said that Boeing is already designing the crew cabin for the new narrow-body aircraft. However, the aircraft development is still in its early stages, and the plans are still taking shape, other sources told the publication.
Commenting on the newspaper's information, Boeing stated that it remains focused on implementing its recovery plan, including the delivery of about 6,000 ordered commercial aircraft and the certification of already announced aircraft models.
The first aviation disaster involving the Boeing 737 MAX occurred in October 2018: a Lion Air aircraft from Indonesia crashed into the Java Sea, killing 189 people. The pilots faced issues with determining altitude and speed.
In March 2019, the second disaster occurred — an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft crashed, killing 157 people. The pilots also reported problems with flight control.
These incidents sharply reduced Boeing's profits and led to lawsuits and a criminal investigation initiated by the U.S. Department of Justice.
