Leading plane leasing-industry veteran Steven Udvar-Hazy says that Boeing should rename its 737-Max aircraft to deflect passengers’ concerns once the grounded jet returns to the skies.
Speaking at the Airlines Economics Aviation Finance Conference in Dublin, Mr Udvar-Hazy, the Founder and Chairman of Air Lease Corporation — said that the Max brand has been damaged by two fatal crashes last year, and there’s no reason for Boeing to retain it.
“We’ve asked Boeing to get rid of that word, ‘Max’,” Mr Udvar-Hazy said. “I think that word, ‘Max’, should go down in the history books as a bad name for an aircraft.”
Since there’s no reference to the Max brand, as such, in Boeing documentation submitted to regulators, it is thought that the company can simply market the model according to the numeric variant, such as the 737-8 or 737-10.
Air Lease is one of the biggest customers for the Max, with about 200 ordered.
In June, Dennis Muilenburg, Boeing’s former Chief Executive, said that he saw no need to drop the Max brand.
Last week, Mr Muilenburg was replaced as CEO by David Calhoun, a General Electric veteran.
While working to fix the issues with the 737-Max aircraft, Boeing identified a new software flaw that will require additional work. This could possibly further delaying the plane’s return to service. The company said it alerted the FAA and was notifying customers and its suppliers.
