After reports indicated that Boeing’s crème de la crème was meeting in San Antonio, Texas on October 20-21, the manufacturer has revealed the first results in the aftermath of the meetings. Chief Executive Officer of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Kevin McAllister was ousted from his role. Boeing named Stanley Deal, former president and CEO of Boeing Global Services, to succeed McAllister. Ted Colbert will succeed Deal, while Vishwa Uddanwadiker will step in as the interim Chief Information Officer and senior vice president of Information Technology & Data Analytics, replacing Colbert.
“Stan brings extensive operational experience at Commercial Airplanes and trusted relationships with our airline customers and industry partners”, noted Dennis Muilenburg, current CEO and former chairman of Boeing. The manufacturer split the roles on October 11, 2019, just shortly after Joint Authorities Technical Review (JATR) revealed a report, criticizing the certification of the 737 MAX.
This announcement marks the first executive to lose his job at the company during the 737 MAX crisis, which still seemingly lacks the clarity to see the light at the end of the tunnel. But the 737 MAX was not only the aircraft that was having issues during the past few years – questions about the go-ahead for the Boeing NMA, blowback amongst customers regarding the delays to the 777X delivery and issues with the 737 NG “pickle forks” are some of the main topics circulating above the manufacturer.
But cash flow is another difficult topic to discuss at the Chicago-based offices of Boeing. In Q3 2019 alone, the company delivered 63 commercial aircraft to customers, a significant drop compared to the same period in 2018, when Boeing delivered 190 planes. Year-to-date total orders are also shockingly low, as Boeing only managed to secure 169 firm commitments for its aircraft – 473 less compared to orders accumulated from January 2018 to September 2018, the company’s commercial data shows.
Boeing is set to reveal its Q3 2019 financial results on October 23, 2019.
“We’re grateful to Kevin for his dedicated and tireless service to Boeing, its customers and its communities during a challenging time, and for his commitment to support this transition”, said Muilenburg.
Kevin McAllister commented that “Boeing is a great company with a commitment to safety I have seen firsthand working side-by-side with many thousands of tremendously talented and dedicated employees”, adding that it was an honor to serve with such a professional team for the past three years.
