Emirates’ Tim Clark says Boeing ‘doesn’t get it’ on 737 Max, 787

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Sir Tim Clark worries about Boeing.

In an exclusive interview with Air current On Tuesday morning, the longtime president of Emirates airline offered a surgical dissection of the US aircraft manufacturer and his acute struggles with the 737 Max, 777X and 787, which he believes are existential, systemic and resolvable.

“The responsibility for the culture, strategy, direction and priorities of this company lies with the Boeing board of directors and no one else. And this is where the responsibility should end. And that’s where they have to settle, ”he said. “So, in the future, the relationship that airlines have with Boeing will be conditioned by what they see done to resolve their internal problems.”

The public reprimand is the harshest Boeing has received from any customer following its series of crises. Clark has been instrumental in directing the largest Boeing and Airbus airliner programs for decades and is one of the most influential people in the industry. He believes Boeing has a way to go in rebuilding trust with regulators, customers and the traveling public.

“I regret having to say all of this, but I think it has to be said, otherwise we’re just going to come out of the Max era, like nothing has happened. Clark said. Boeing’s leadership “can take this as it sees fit.” If they don’t like what they hear, well, that’s hard. It’s someone like me who says, you have to make your own way.

The nearly 90-minute interview covered a wide range of topics, including the future of the airline which until recently held the title of the world’s largest international carrier, the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as as its fleet strategy and the future of its Airbus A380 superjumbo fleet. These topics will be explored in subsequent articles.

Clark, 71, delayed his retirement last year because “this bloody pandemic”, in his words, ravaged Emirates and the global airline industry. The conclusion of this stage of his career coincides with a cataclysm that left the industry in shock and coincides with the worst security and operational crises in Boeing history.

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