Boeing considers 737 enhancements

Bloomberg News

Boeing Co., whose 737 is the world's most widely flown plane, said it's studying new "product enhancements" as replacement plans for the aircraft have been delayed toward the end of the next decade.

The Chicago-based company is considering rolling out more changes to the current version of the jet as it has done since 2000, with improvements to performance, comfort and navigation, Russell Young, a spokesman in Seattle, said Wednesday.

"We will share the details of future enhancements when we have decided to implement them," Young said.

Both Boeing and Airbus SAS have struggled to meet customers' demands for a 20 percent reduction in operating costs for the 737 and the Airbus A320, short-haul planes that are the backbone of fleets for many airlines' domestic routes. Enginemakers haven't come up with technology yet that would ensure enough of a decrease in fuel burn and emissions, forcing planemakers to push back replacement plans until late in the next decade.

With environmentalists and the slumping economy putting pressure on the industry, Boeing is considering a bridge model that would provide a 10 percent improvement until a replacement is ready, according to the current edition of Aviation and the Environment magazine.

Toulouse, France-based Airbus said Dec. 17 that it has begun testing a new kind of wingtip on the single-aisle A320 to boost fuel efficiency.