Pandemic impact could lead Boeing to tweak next jet’s capacity: analyst

The likelihood of business travel demand weakening permanently could lead Boeing to tweak the design of whatever jet it develops next. That is according to aerospace analyst Kevin Michaels, who thinks the pandemic could lead Boeing to develop a smaller aircraft than previously planned. Boeing is widely expected to launch development of a new jet in the coming years, though exactly when remains unclear. Also unclear is the capacity of that aircraft: Boeing could potentially launch a 737 replacement, or — and perhaps viewed as more likely — it could move forward with a slightly larger jet: a “mid-market” aircraft, like a modernised 757. Of course, Boeing’s design parameters will reflect its expectations about air travel demand – a future that Covid-19 has clouded. Though leisure travel has rebounded nicely on domestic and short-haul routes, business travel has not. When that high-profit sector will fully return, if ever, is up for debate. US airlines have predicted a protracted rebound. But Michaels, managing partner of consultancy AeroDynamic Advisory, suspects business travel might never again resemble the pre-Covid normal. “I, for one, think it will change forever,” he says on 9 February, speaking during the Pacific Northwest Aerospace Alliance annual meeting in Lynnwood, Washington. Specifically, Michaels thinks some “intra-organisational travel” – meaning employees travelling to meet with colleagues who work for the same company – will never fully return. That segment accounts for 30% of business travel, he says.<br/>