Boeing Reportedly Planning Successor Jet to 737 MAX

Boeing is reportedly in the  early stages of developing a new single-aisle, twin-engine aircraft intended to eventually replace the 737 MAX family, according to people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal. The program  remains in initial planning, and no final decisions have been made regarding production or certification.

Earlier this year, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg met with Rolls-Royce Holdings to discuss a potential new engine for the aircraft. The company is also said to be designing a refreshed flight deck for the next-generation narrow-body jet. These efforts remain conceptual, and neither Boeing nor Rolls-Royce has confirmed details.

Boeing declined to comment to Reuters, while Rolls-Royce also withheld a statement. The US planemaker continues to focus on delivering its backlog of  roughly 6,000 aircraft orders and securing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification for pending models.

The development comes amid heightened regulatory scrutiny and operational setbacks for Boeing. The 737 MAX, introduced in 2017, was grounded worldwide in 2019 after two crashes killed 346 people, leading to lawsuits, investigations, and billions in financial losses.

In 2020, the FAA lifted the global grounding order, though concerns persisted. In early 2024, the FAA capped MAX production at 38 aircraft per month after an Alaska Airlines flight suffered a midair panel blowout traced to missing bolts. That incident prompted a US Department of Justice criminal probe, which found Boeing in violation of a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement tied to earlier certification misrepresentations.

Despite these challenges, Boeing insists its recovery plan remains on course. “Our priorities include the delivery of roughly 6,000 backlogged commercial airplanes and the certification of previously announced models,” the company told The Wall Street Journal.