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Boeing expects demand to increase for 737 jets

Jan. 13, 2012 – Boeing is expecting demand for its narrow-body 737 to increase along with its upcoming Next-Generation 737 MAX, which offers improved fuel efficiency.

In response, the company is planning to build its new 737 MAX, an upgrade of its earlier aircraft, in a bid to double its output. Boeing's general manager of 737 program Beverly Wyse told Reuters that some airline and military customers will keep ordering the Next-Generation (NG) aircraft simply because it is available now and because they are comfortable with it.

"The Next-Generation and the MAX will be made simultaneously for a while until Boeing can phase out the older model," Wyse said.

The company has reached its production target of 35 of its 737-model aircraft in a month and is planning to further increase its production in the next two years. Boeing said the first plane built at the increased production rate was ordered by AWAS Aviation Services and produced at its factory in Renton, Washington.

It is now planning to further increase its production of the 737 NG to 38 a month in the second quarter of 2013 and 42 in the first half of 2014. The company is also considering setting up a MAX assembly unit between two lines used for the current 737 NG by clearing room in Boeing's narrow-body plant near Seattle.

Last year Boeing had decided to produce a 737 MAX with a new fuel-efficient engine, which is expected to enter service in 2017, instead of bringing out an all-new successor to the 737 NG amid completion and manufacturing constraints.