The sad saga of the Boeing 737 Max has been a slow-burning corporate, engineering, regulatory, human-interest and public-relations nightmare for going on six months now—with no end in sight. The magnitude of Boeing’s deadly foul-up is a frequent topic of conversation in airliner cockpits, and considerable ink has been spilled over the subject in both aviation and general media. Now, I’m not an aeronautical engineer, and I have yet to fly the 737, but quite a few of my friends are current or former 737NG pilots at various U.S. and European airlines. The general consensus is that the Max was simply one stretch too many of an airplane that had already been shoehorned into an ever-expanding number of sizes and roles until it barely resembled the well-considered original design.
Boeing 757: A Modern Classic
Key Takeaways:
- The Boeing 737 Max crisis is presented as a symptom of Boeing's declining engineering excellence since its 1997 merger with McDonnell Douglas, following previous quality control issues with the 787.
- The Boeing 757 is lauded as an example of "old Boeing's" superior engineering, excelling in its unique niche with unmatched performance, versatility, and enduring capabilities even decades after its introduction.
- Despite its capabilities, the 757 was discontinued due to being considered "too much airplane" (heavy, costly) from an airline management perspective, creating a market gap.
- The author urges Boeing to refocus on engineering vision and culture to overcome current challenges and innovate a suitable modern replacement for the 757, rather than dither while competitors move forward.
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