CHICAGO - Boeing Co. Chief Executive Officer Jim McNerney voiced confidence Tuesday that the airplane maker will be able to deliver the first 787 on time in May but acknowledged there is now no margin for error in order to keep to that schedule.
His comments at a Morgan Stanley conference in Dana Point, Calif., came six days after Boeing said the first test flight was pushed back to mid-November or mid-December because of complications with final assembly and finalizing flight-control software.
The delay will leave the company just five to six months before it is scheduled to deliver the first 787 to Japan's All Nippon Airways Co., or about half the time it took to test the 777 a decade ago.
McNerney told analysts the testing delay has simply eliminated the extra timing margin built into Boeing's plan. 'The plan has always been a five- to six-month' certification, he said. 'It's an aggressive plan, but it has substance to it.'
'Is there room for major glitches at this stage? The answer is no,' McNerney said.
McNerney said more should be known about timing of the first flight and any effect that could have on the delivery schedule by late October.
The Associated Press
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