Boeing to Raise 767 Output After Jet Finds New Life as a Freighter
- Planemaker to boost output 20% by 2020 amid air-cargo rebound
- Competitive threat lurks as Airbus mulls A330neo freighter
Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg
This article is for subscribers only.
Boeing Co. plans to boost 767 production -- and get a tidy profit bump -- as the aging jetliner gains new popularity as a midsize freighter favored by the likes of Amazon.com Inc. and FedEx Corp.
A rebound in the global air-cargo market spurred the decision to boost annual output 20 percent to 36 planes by 2020, Boeing said as it reported earnings Wednesday. That would be the third increase in the monthly production rate since early 2016 for the jetliner, which has an order backlog valued at $13.4 billion before customary discounts.