Boeing has finalised definition of its new 737 MAX, achieving the milestone of ‘firm concept’ for an aircraft seen by the manufacturer as its “future single-aisle strategy”.
Talking to Australian Aviation recently, Boeing vice president – marketing Commercial Airplanes Randy Tinseth said: “I’m amazed what we’ve been able to get out of that airplane. The ‘next generation’ 737s were launched in 1997 and today’s aircraft are six per cent more efficient than them.”
The improvements incorporated in the MAX will deliver another 13 per cent fuel efficiency improvement from new LEAP-1B engines from CFM International, a redesigned tail cone and advanced technology winglets.
“So now we’re talking about an airplane that will be 19 per cent more fuel efficient than an airplane we delivered in 1997,” Tinseth said, adding the MAX is also expected to be around 40 per cent quieter than current 737s.
Boeing is progressing further refinement of the MAX’s configuration towards detailed design planned for mid-2013.
