Boeing CEO gives update on 737 production, MAX 10 progress and 777X flight tests

Boeing President and CEO Kelly Ortberg presented a mix bag of industry updates regarding the planemaker’s progress as he spoke at Morgan Stanley Laguna Conference in California.

On September 16, 2026, alongside Chief Financial Officer Jay Malave, Ortberg outlined some of the company’s accomplishments over the last year and identified areas in need of improvement.

Ortberg’s update included discussions on Boeing 737 MAX production/deliveries, MAX 10 certification, and 777X flight tests.

Boeing 737 MAX production

In May 2026, Ortberg told the Bernstein Annual Strategic Decisions Conference in New York that Boeing was “off and rolling at the 47 rate” after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) backed increasing production.

Addressing the 47 rate at Morgan Stanley Laguna, Ortberg said that while Boeing is “now driving at 47 a month” it is not yet “stable”.

Paul Gordon / BoeingOrtberg explained that it had taken a “little bit longer” than he had anticipated to increase from 42 to 47 aircraft a month.

According to the Boeing CEO, the company’s supply chain is currently in “really good shape” but “we’re constrained right now is in our wings production”.

“We actually produce all the wings in Renton for the MAX line,” Ortberg said. “And we just have not seen the flow improvements that we expected in the time frame. So, it’s taken us a little bit longer.”

Ortberg has previously stated that his ambition is to reach a production rate of 52 Boeing 737s a month and “someday to a 63-a-month rate”.

During his conference speech, he said that once the 47 rate is stabilized and the new production line in Everett, Washington, is certified and producing “then we’ll be ready to move to rate 52”.

Boeing 737 MAX 10 certification

In August 2026, Boeing confirmed that the MAX 7 had secured type certification from the FAA, leaving only the MAX 10 awaiting approval.

BoeingDuring his presentation, Ortberg said that the MAX 10 is “coming very shortly” adding that Boeing is “knocking down these major milestones on certification”.

“We completed all the flight testing, all the testing, all of the real work is done,” Ortberg said. “Now we’re just in the documentation phase.”

Boeing 777X flight tests

On the 777X flight tests, Ortberg said that some of the 777-9 testing may “spill into the next year”.

Ortberg explained that currently Boeing does not have ETOPS authorization to perform the extended flight test program due to the mid-seal issue on the aircraft’s GE9X engines.

Boeing“Until we get the mid-seal certification plan complete, we can’t get authorization to start that ETOPS,” Ortberg said. “We’re expecting that very soon. GE Aerospace is working that diligently. I think they had to do a little more testing than what we originally planned.”

The issue involving the GE9X engine was first identified in January 2026.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner production

Ortberg said Boeing has stabilized Boeing 787 production at a rate of eight per month after engine deliveries slowed operations earlier in the year.

“We’ve stabilized at rate 8, we have not yet achieved the engine delivery performance that will allow us to go to rate 10,” Ortberg said. “That’s probably moving towards the end of the year.”

Ortberg explained that “lumpy deliveries” this year were primarily driven by lengthy and complex seating and seat certification.

The CEO admitted that although Boeing has a “pretty good rollout rate of eight a month”, production will be a “little bit lumpy here month-to-month on 787 delivery”.

Article reporting based on conference transcript from EarningsAPI.

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