He believes that structural tests conducted during the extended testing phase could encourage Boeing to develop such a variant.
"So in the end, the amount of testing they've been doing on this aircraft – given the time it's taken to get out of the door – is already telling Boeing that they have the structural metrics to actually look at a stretch on this aircraft," Clark said.
Clark expressed optimism about the core engineering, noting that Boeing will likely showcase a fully powered -9 equipped with final cabin configurations by November 2026.
"So I'm kind of confident that that's the way it'll go," he said.
Retraining focus on certification milestones, Clark observed that Boeing must resolve its narrow-body pipeline before fully deploying resources to commercial delivery of the flagship wide-body.
"And then we just wait for the certification process to complete, and its extended twin-engined operations capability programmed," he said.
Early Airframes Obsolete
Reflecting on past design visits, Clark highlighted how early-build aircraft became obsolete while waiting on flight testing approvals.
"So far, so good," he said.
He noted that Boeing should consider writing off the early airframes rather than holding them on corporate balance sheets.
"Those airframes that were built for us…I was on board the first one, kitted out completely – except for our game-changer first-class suites," Clark said.
The long gap between initial assembly and final airworthiness approval drastically altered the economic viability of the first batch.
Pandemic disruptions subsequently crippled international travel demand and stalled manufacturing timelines across the global sector.
