Boeing CEO 'not overly anxious' about Chinese narrowbody jet

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun downplayed speculation that China's maiden commercial flight of its domestically produced C919 narrowbody jet could foreshadow the end of the duopoly currently held by the US planemaker and its European rival Airbus. On Sunday, China Eastern Airlines flew a C919 filled with passengers from Shanghai to Beijing - a milestone for manufacturer Commercial Aviation Corp of China (COMAC). Calhoun said the C919 is a "good airplane," but it will take a "long while" for COMAC to build the production capacity needed to meet Chinese airlines' demand. “Three providers in a growing global market of this size and scale should not be the most intimidating thought in the world,” Calhoun told reporters this week. “For us to get overly anxious about that, I think it's a silly prospect.” Boeing should focus on existing competition and position itself to "win that technology race," Calhoun said. He added that China remains "our friend, our customer," but business could proceed with "fits and starts" due to geopolitical tensions. Chinese airlines began returning the 737 MAX to service earlier this year. Although all Chinese users have restarted 737 flights, deliveries of the jet have been stalled amid friction between the United States and China. In April, the Chinese aviation regulator published a report on the 737, which was hailed by Calhoun at the time as an "important step" for restarting MAX deliveries after two crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed a total of 346 people.<br/>