Randy's Journal: Archives

14 June 2005

Hot day in Paris

The weather and the activity heated up during the second day here at the Paris Air Show. As temperatures rose, so did Boeing's interactions with customers, suppliers, government officials, media and Wall Street types.

There's a positive buzz at the show this year. And it's a lot stronger than in the recent past. I'm talking about real excitement, instead of trepidation, about where the industry is heading.

It's been hot, too, in the order department. Over the past two days we've seen significant orders and commitments for more than 90 airplanes.

Just today, two of the world's leading leasing companies and savviest airplane buyers ordered 48. International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) ordered 28 Next Generation 737s and 777s. GE Commercial Aviation Services (GECAS) ordered 20 Next Generation 737s.

In addition to announcing the 737 and 777 orders, ILFC CEO Steven F. Udvar-Hazy made very kind comments about the 787 Dreamliner and our approach to the commercial aviation market.

Also, Jet Airways, the largest private carrier based in India, announced its intent to order 20 737s and 777s.

Now, as I've mentioned before, Boeing doesn't save up and hold orders so we can announce them at air shows. So, I want to point out that these are examples of agreements that came together at the time of the show, and are opportunities for customers to highlight their activity this week.

Whatever the case might be, these announcements help demonstrate our airplanes' appeal and the soundness of our strategy. With validation like this we know we're doing things right.

And I have to add that it's also a great week for the men and women who design, build, sell, support, and operate our 747 and 767 airplanes. Several months ago many people were expecting us to announce the closing of those lines soon. Happily, the recovery that has taken hold is generating enough demand for those airplanes that Commercial Airplanes CEO Alan Mulally was able to announce at his Paris news conference that we don't expect to have to make those decisions any time soon. I can't tell you how great it was to hear that.

One last note. Airbus tried stirring things up a bit today. Their CEO Noel Forgeard held a news conference here and proceeded to criticize, it seemed, all things Boeing. Everything from our strategy and our 787 Dreamliner, to the way Boeing does public relations. At the same time, he tried offering us advice about our business practices!

Hmm. Could it be that the competition is just feeling the heat a bit?