Boeing Business Jets is already considering the potential longer-range version of the 737 Max 7 to fill a pre-existing gap in the VIP version of the single-aisle family, even as the airframer's Commercial Airplanes unit studies the proposed redesign.
"We are a very big piece of that conversation," Boeing Business Jets president David Longridge told journalists at EBACE today.
Three years ago, Longridge's predecessor Steve Taylor discussed plans for a new BBJ Max with 7,000nm range, which would combine the fuselage of the Max 7 with the wing of the Max 8.
Boeing last year launched the BBJ Max with the airframe and wing of the Max 8 but left a VIP version of the Max 7 out of the product portfolio. More recently, however, Boeing Commercial Airplanes has acknowledged interest in slightly lengthening the fuselage of the Max 7 for commercial customers to increase capacity and range, which might call for upgauging the wing to that of the larger Max 8.
If Boeing relaunches the Max 7 as a larger aircraft, that could play into the BBJ division's product development plans.
"It's a very active part of our future family plan," Longridge says. "We are very much engaged in that discussion. Obviously, we want an airplane that will fly more than 7,000nm. That's what we're driving for. We hope to announce something very soon – probably in the next few months."
Source: Cirium Dashboard
