Aircraft
Boeing Mulls Production Site for 737 MAX
Boeing made its plans to re-engine the 737NG official on August 30, when it announced
The new Boeing 737 MAX will involve “the simplest re-engining possible,” according to BCA chief executive Jim Albaugh. (Photo: Boeing)
The new Boeing 737 MAX will involve “the simplest re-engining possible,” according to BCA chief executive Jim Albaugh. (Photo: Boeing)

Boeing made its plans to re-engine the 737NG official on August 30, when it announced board approval to proceed with development of a CFM Leap-1B-powered version of the world’s best selling commercial airplane, dubbed the 737 MAX. However, the company has yet to decide where it will build the new family of airplanes.

The current site of 737 production–Renton, Wash.–tops the list of possibilities, said Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Jim Albaugh, but plans already call for that factory to raise monthly production rates from today’s 31.5 to 42 by early 2014. A transition from 737NGs to 737 MAXs and a likely need for further increases by the time the re-engined airplanes enter production in 2017 could figure prominently into Boeing’s decision. In any case, Albaugh said the company would announce a plan within six to eight months.