Boeing has set a tentative date of 29 January to conduct the first flight of the re-engined 737 Max.
The 737 Max 8 airframe was publicly unveiled in early December.
Boeing says a final confirmation of the maiden flight date will depend on “weather and other factors”.
The 737 Max is powered by CFM International Leap-1B engines, from the same family being developed for the Airbus A320neo.
Boeing launched its re-engined single-aisle jet some nine months after Airbus, and the maiden flight is set to take place just under nine months after Airbus’s own Leap-powered A320neo version first became airborne.
The Leap-equipped A320neo initially flew in mid-May last year.
Airbus’s lead A320neo version, with Pratt & Whitney PW1100G powerplants, had flown eight months previously, in September 2014. The first customer example has just been delivered, to Lufthansa.
Boeing had secured orders for 3,072 Max jets, across the three variants, by the end of 2015.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
