‘We need someone to fix Boeing.’ Here’s who could replace Calhoun as the troubled plane maker’s CEO

Help wanted at Boeing. CEO Dave Calhoun on Monday announced he is stepping down from the aerospace giant’s top post at year’s end as the company struggles with a safety and production quality crisis tied to its bestselling airplane, the 737 Max. Boeing said it will begin a search for Calhoun’s replacement. Boeing also announced Monday it’s replacing board Chair Larry Kellner and the CE of its all-important commercial airplanes unit, Stan Deal. Calhoun told CNBC on Monday that the decision to retire was “100%” his own and that he would be involved in finding his successor. His departure isn’t much of a surprise given the struggles of the last few months. Boeing’s customers had grown frustrated under Calhoun’s watch as they faced the fallout from recurring quality issues that span programs like the 737 Max, the 787 Dreamliner and the two 747s that will serve as Air Force One aircraft. “We need someone to fix Boeing,” one major airline executive, who wasn’t authorized to speak to the media, told CNBC after Boeing announced the management shake-up Monday. “They unequivocally needed a change.” With supply chain issues, quality lapses and more regulator scrutiny in the wake of a panel blowout from an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 in January, airplane deliveries are arriving late, and airline executives say the problems have forced them to change their growth and fleet plans. Executives at Boeing’s customers told CNBC they want the company’s new leader to have manufacturing acumen, expertise in the highly regulated and technical world of aviation, and, perhaps most difficult of all, the ability to rally Boeing’s employees and ensure a culture of safety, consistency and innovation. “This is going to be a challenging role to fill. You’re going to need someone with a huge amount of energy and commitment,” said John Plueger, CEO of Air Lease, a major buyer of Boeing planes that leases them to airlines. “You don’t want somebody for two years. You want someone at the head of the ship for as long as possible.” “I want somebody who knows how to handle a big, long-cycled business like ours,” Calhoun said Monday while announcing his departure. “It’s not just the production of the airplane. It’s the development of the next airplane. Our next lead is going to develop ... the next airplane for the Boeing company.”<br/>