Emirates will discuss delays to the Boeing 777X aircraft with the manufacturer during the Dubai airshow, Reuters reported on November 1, 2021.
“There will be a discussion… before and during the air show,” Emirates chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said when asked by Reuters if the airline would be holding talks with Boeing during the event.
The Dubai airshow, which takes place every two years, runs from November 14-18, 2021.
Emirates, the largest customer of the 777X, has repeatedly criticized Boeing over delays to the 777X, most recently on October 6, 2021, when Tim Clark, president of the airline, said that the uncertainty over deliveries would cause major disruption to Emirates’ operations.
Initially, Emirates was due to receive its first 777X in June 2020, but Clark has previously said that he expects the jet will no longer be available until 2024. Boeing expects certification in the final quarter of 2023, with the first delivery before the end of that year.
All eyes will be on the talks between Emirates and Boeing at the Dubai airshow to see if Emirates swaps any more 777X orders for more 787 Dreamliners, with Al Maktoum having previously said in May 2021 that the airline was not ruling out swapping up to a third of its order.
Emirates has ordered 126 777X aircraft, however that is a downgrade from an initial order for 150 placed in 2013. In 2019, it canceled orders for 24 777X, instead agreeing to take 30 Dreamliners.
Al Maktoum also said during a press conference in Dubai on November 1, 2021 that he expected ”good deals” for civil and military contracts at the air show, the Reuters report added.
He added that Dubai airport would return to full capacity in two weeks when it reopens its last remaining concourse