According to Boeing VP and GM-717 Program and Long Beach Division James Phillips, the 717 program is alive and well.
“We have a number of proposals out in the market and the interest level is very high,” Phillips told ATWOnline. Industry analysts suggested that the Star Alliance buy was a last gasp for the model, and following Air Canada’s decision to purchase regional jets naysayers forecast closure for the 717. But Phillips noted that the Star partners’ timeframes differ greatly. “We are still working with Lufthansa, SAS and Austrian,” he said. “We don’t expect decisions until later this year.”
The 717 has been ticking over at 12 aircraft per year–hardly exciting–but Boeing sticks by it believing that a sustained upswing will see orders flow in. With Harry Stonecipher back as CEO, the 717’s fortunes are looking better as it was he in a previous position as CEO of McDonnell Douglas who launched the then-MD-95 on an order for 50 from ValuJet, later reborn as AirTran. Despite buying 737s for its transcontinental requirement, AirTran has been a great supporter of the 717 and intends to keep its huge fleet, Phillips said.
In addition, he said Boeing has not given up on Qantas, which ordered A320s for its new low-cost carrier Jetstar. It is transferring its fleet of 14 717s from its regional arm QantasLink to launch Jetstar in May and intended to phase them out as A320s arrived. But Phillips is preaching the virtues of the 717 to Jetstar and the new airline’s management has committed to look at a two-aircraft fleet with the 717s operating on its short, thin routes. It will be a challenge to keep the model in the Jetstar fleet but Phillips is committed to make it happen.
He also told ATWOnline that airlines such as Cebu Pacific are looking to roll over their DC-9-30 fleets for 717s.