Boeing 737 Max chief retires as planes stay grounded
Boeing’s (BA) programme manager for its grounded 737 Max fleet is set to retire in the wake of two fatal crashes involving the planes.
Eric Lindblad will leave his post in the next few weeks after only around a year in the job, replaced by Mark Jenks, the current head of Boeing’s “next airplane” project, according to Reuters.
The US giant is trying to get its best-selling 737 Max model back in the air. The plane was grounded after two devastating crashes in the space of five months that saw 350 people lose their lives.
Jenks faces “daunting challenges, including untangling a backlog of undelivered planes, getting production back on course for planned output increases, and finishing development of the 737 MAX 10,” sources told Reuters.
Jenks was previously involved in turning around the 787 Dreamliner programme.
But Boeing made clear Jenks’ previous project, focusing on new potential mid-market planes, would continue.
READ MORE: Thomas Cook shares plunge as Chinese firm plans rescue deal talks