• Boeing should start designing a new plane as soon as possible, a former CEO has said.
• Phil Condit told The Wall Street Journal that working on a new plane could boost morale.
• In recent years, Boeing has only updated past models rather than designed entirely new planes.

A former Boeing CEO has called for the company to start designing a new plane as soon as possible to help change its fortunes.

Phil Condit, who led the planemaker from 1996 to 2003, told The Wall Street Journal, "You've got to get people excited about what they're doing. You don't come to work just for a paycheck. You come to work because you care about what you're doing."

Condit was asked as part of an article that asked several industry leaders how Boeing could turn things around after a difficult year.

Boeing's share price fell 31% in 2024 — the worst performer on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. It faced a wave of scrutiny from customers and regulators after a door plug came off an Alaska Airlines 737 Max in midair last January. A seven-week strike, further limiting aircraft production, compounded its problems.

The resolution of the strike included a commitment that Boeing's next commercial airplane would be built in the Seattle area — if a new program is launched during the term of the agreement.

Boeing last announced a new plane model more than 20 years ago — the 787 Dreamliner — which entered commercial service in 2011.

In the years since, the planemaker has instead worked on planes which are updates to previous models — but these have come with problems.

The 737 Max is the fourth-generation descendant of a single-aisle airliner designed in the 1960s.

The 737 Max suffered two crashes in 2018 and 2019, in which 346 people died.

MCAS, a software that played a major role in the crashes, was added because the Max had a tendency to tilt upward in some scenarios — linked to the addition of new, larger engines.

In 2019, The New York Times reported that the 737 Max program was hurried to compete with rival Airbus' A320neo, which broke records at 2011's Paris Air Show.

Boeing's next plane is set to be the 777X — a modernized version of the world's most popular wide-body jet, the 777.

However, it has been beset by certification delays. Initially set to enter service in 2020, Boeing announced last October this has been pushed back to 2026.

Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

• China Airlines ordered nearly $12 billion worth of Boeing and Airbus widebody aircraft.
• The deal is worth about $7.4 billion to Boeing, with China Airlines as its newest 777X customer.
• Boeing is still trying to certify the now at least six year delayed 777X.

Boeing has added another customer to its 777X backlog as the planemaker continues to work toward certification of the long-delayed widebody.

Taiwanese carrier China Airlines announced a nearly $12 billion order for 10 Boeing 777Xs, 10 Airbus A350-1000s, and four 777X freighters on Friday.

This is the first order Boeing has secured for the 777X since Korean Air and Qatar Airways announced deals for the jet in July.

According to a filing, the order is worth about $7.4 billion to Boeing at list prices and is likely a sign of relief for the struggling planemaker and its delayed 777X — a setback that has already put Boeing at least $1 billion in the hole.

The yet-to-be-certified 777X, which will come in two passenger variants, was already five years behind schedule when a labor strike halted production for over seven weeks this fall and further pushed the timeline back to at least 2026.

Quality control and 777X design issues haven't helped. Boeing finally restarted production of its 767 and 777 models on Wednesday.

The 777X is designed as a more fuel-efficient replacement for the classic 777. Thanks to its longer wings, more powerful engines, and revolutionary folding wingtips, the 777-9 variant China Airlines bought is designed to fly up to 426 people across nearly 8,400 miles.

Along with the 787 Dreamliner, the potentially lucrative 777X is key to Boeing's reputational and financial recovery.

However, the 777X's delays have forced airlines to fly older jets for longer. It has also opened the door for Airbus to sell its readily available rival A350.

"Emirates has had to make significant and highly expensive amendments to our fleet programs as a result of Boeing's multiple contractual shortfalls," Emirates president Tim Clark told Business Insider in October after the latest 777X delay.

Emirates received its first A350 in November. It was initially supposed to follow the 777X but will now lead the airline's long-haul expansion.

China Airlines joins a dozen other global buyers, like Emirates, Qatar Airways, and British Airways. No US airline has ordered the 777X because its size and range don't fit into the business models.

Data from the manufacturers shows about 1,350 global orders for the A350 and about 500 for the 777X.

• After months of waiting, Emirates unveiled its first of 65 Airbus A350-900 aircraft on November 27.
• The jet has 312 seats across business, premium economy, and coach and will fly nine initial routes.
• Emirates president Tim Clark criticized Boeing at the delivery ceremony for continued 777X delays.

Emirates received a new jet type for the first time since 2008 with the arrival of its highly anticipated Airbus A350-900, but ill feelings about the plane's American rival were not absent from the milestone day.

Emirates revealed the 312-seat plane on November 27 at a delivery ceremony in Dubai. It features refreshed business and coach cabins including the airlines' popular premium economy.

The jet will complement the airline's other long-haul planes, like the Boeing 777 and the Airbus A380 double-decker, and should help Emirates further expand its global presence with new routes.

At the ceremony, Emirates president Tim Clark once again criticized Boeing for delays to the 777X. He said 85 of Boeing's new jet should be in the Emirates fleet by now.

"We are expansionists, as you know," he told the media, Reuters reported. "And we've had our wings clipped."

Boeing's new 777X widebody was expected to fly with Emirates years ago but is now not expected until at least 2026 amid ongoing production and design problems, Boeing's 737 Max quality control issues, and a now-ended seven-week labor strike.

Emirates has 205 of Boeing's new aircraft on order, holding 40% of the world's 503 total 777X orders. It's also the largest customer of the classic Boeing 777.

"I fail to see how Boeing can make any meaningful forecasts of delivery dates," he told Business Insider in October. "We will be having a serious conversation with them over the next couple of months."

Emirates' A350 was also delayed on time

Emirates expected to receive its first A350 in August after being delayed from 2023 and launch nine routes by the end of 2024. Those routes will now begin next year.

"We're a frustrated entity because we need airplanes, and we need them now," he said in November, according to Bloomberg.

The plane's inaugural flight was pushed four times from September and is now scheduled from Dubai to Edinburgh, Scotland, on January 3.

In addition to its first set of A350s, Emirates expects to receive a longer-ranged variant next summer. But instead of being the modified ultra-long-range A350-900ULR flown by Singapore Airlines, FlightGlobal reported it will sport fewer seats to travel up to 16 hours.

What to expect onboard Emirates' A350-900

Emirates A350-900 will sport 312 seats across three cabins: 32 in business, 21 in premium economy, and 259 in regular coach.

The longer-ranged variant will have 298 passenger seats instead of 312 across the same three cabins.

Business class resembles the seats on Emirates' Airbus A380 superjumbos and its newly refurbished 777, complete with a minibar and "improved" storage. The 1×2×1 configuration means every passenger will have direct aisle access.

The high-dollar cabin won't have the on-board bar or fancy showers present on Emirates mammoth A380s.

The A350 business cabin also won't have the flyer-favorite doors that other airlines have been actively adding to their long-haul planes, though Emirates said the seats are still "very private."

Emirates maintained its premium economy cabin for the A350 after installing the business-economy hybrid cabin on many of its A380 and 777s. Each seat in the 2×3×2 cabin includes a deep recline, leg and footrests, and 13.3-inch televisions.

The economy cabin has been redesigned with a new six-way adjustable headrest to increase passenger comfort.

It has a 3×3×3 layout and will sport electric window blinds, which are also present in business and premium economy.

Otherwise, flyers can expect the regular coach Emirates experience. This includes a wood-like tray table, a seatback pouch with extra pockets, generous legroom of up to 32 inches, hot meals, power ports, and an inflight screen.