Boeing CEO Jim McNerney told employees via the group’s website

Boeing CEO Jim McNerney told employees via the group’s website on Monday that he was confident about the new schedule for the 787 Dreamliner programme. “It is an achievable, high-confidence plan”, his message said. “We have taken a more conservative approach to setting our milestones, based on our experience to date and the idea that being wrong yet again would be more of a burden to our customers than taking a little more time to get it right”. Mr McNerney emphasised on the “fundamental, game-changing innovation” brought by the 787, which explains why the programme is more complex and risky than previous ones. He also defended Boeing’s outsourcing model: “The global-partnership model of the 787 remains a fundamentally sound strategy”. But he also conceded some errors in the supply plans, saying “we will modify our approach somewhat on future programmes”. Boeing, which unveils its quarterly results today, is also expected to give a public update on the Dreamliner. The Seattle Times (22/04)