Boeing now plans to make a launch decision on the New Mid-market Airplane (NMA) in 2019 but remains committed to an entry-into-service date in 2025, chief executive Dennis Muilenburg said on the eve of the Farnborough air show.
The proposed concept for a 200-270-seat family of aircraft with 4,000-5,000nm range has been on Boeing's drawing boards since 2012, but the launch decision is still at least six-18 months away.
Boeing executives emphasised in the pre-air-show news conference that the six-year development schedule would be feasible if the board of directors approved the launch decision next year.
"We're also not going to be rushed to a decision," Muilenburg says. "It's about pushing the future production system more than about pushing technology."
Boeing has proposed an aircraft with a hybrid fuselage cross-section, which is generally taken to mean a wider passenger cabin and a narrower cargo bay.
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Source: Cirium Dashboard
