A Boeing 737 Max due to be delivered to Ryanair now brands the name 737-8200.
Boeing has been accused of attempting to rebrand the troubled 737 Max by using the name 737-8200.
Photos shared on social media show a new 737 Max plane in Ryanair colours outside Boeing’s manufacturing base in Renton,Washington, branding the name 737-8200.
HI-Res Photos: The MAX name has been dropped from the high capacity version of the #737MAX8 that @Ryanair has on order. pic.twitter.com/3q5QBN0TTg
— Woodys Aeroimages (@AeroimagesChris) 15 July 2019
The plane featured in the photo is one of 135 that Ryanair has on order.
Neither Ryanair nor Boeing has commented on nor confirmed the name change.
Further increasing suspicions that a name change is on the cards, when IAG signed a letter of intent for 200 of the controversial planes in June, there was no mention of the word “Max” in the press conference.
The plane was simply referred to as “B737 aircraft.”
In April, Donald Trump tweeted that Boeing should “rebrand the plane with a new name.”
What do I know about branding, maybe nothing (but I did become President!), but if I were Boeing, I would FIX the Boeing 737 MAX, add some additional great features, & REBRAND the plane with a new name.
No product has suffered like this one. But again, what the hell do I know?— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 15 April 2019
What is painted on the plane is a matter for the airline rather than the manufacturer.
The Max aircraft remains grounded worldwide after two crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia killed a total of 346 people.