Boeing Business Jets president Capt Steve Taylor handed over the reins to the organisation’s top job this morning to his replacement David Longridge.
Taylor is bowing out on a high, after net orders this year hit double figures for the first time since 2008. “We have secured 13 orders in 2014 – five BBJ 737s, four BBJ Max 8s, three BBJ 777s and one BBJ 787 - which is a major achievement given the market conditions,” says Taylor, who is leaving to become chief pilot for Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
“It’s a big change to leave the VIP world, but my new job will take me back to flying which I am very excited about,” he says.
Longridge, meanwhile, began his career at Boeing 22 years ago as an engineer. He most recently served as a sales director on European airline accounts. “My first sales job was with BBJ in the early days of the company, so my career has come full circle,” he says.
But the corporate airliner division has undergone a significant transformation in the intervening period.
“When I joined Boeing Business Jets there was only one product [the BBJ1] and now we have 11 narrow- and widebodies. When I left, we had sold six BBJs. This has risen to 228 today. I have a lot to get to grips with.”
Source: FlightGlobal.com
