Emirates told Boeing about three years ago that it would not accept its earliest-built 777X aircraft, choosing newly manufactured jets instead of airframes requiring extensive modifications, airline president Tim Clark said in Frankfurt.
Speaking at Routes World, Clark said the position had been documented long before it attracted public attention in July. The rejection covers the first 10 Boeing 777-9s produced for Emirates, according to Aviation Week’s earlier reporting.
“It was absolutely clear we will not take these in. And that our new aircraft will be newly built,” Clark said. “The fact was clear it was documented.”
The affected aircraft belong to an initial production batch of approximately 20 jets that have spent years awaiting certification and delivery. Clark said the early Emirates aircraft would need substantial work to reach current standards, and that the airline wanted examples manufactured under Boeing’s newer production and quality-control processes.
“We really wanted aircraft that were built under the new regime of building aircraft,” he said. To Emirates, that means waiting for newly built aircraft rather than accepting early airframes brought forward through rework. Clark left their eventual disposition to Boeing. “Whether they can revamp them, offer them at this kind of price is up to Boeing,” he said. Boeing’s plans for those aircraft and the contractual arrangements for replacing them are unclear.
Emirates remains the 777X’s largest customer. Its commitment began at the programme’s launch at the Dubai Airshow in November 2013, when it ordered 150 aircraft: 115 777-9s and 35 777-8s. Deliveries were originally expected to begin in 2020.
Further orders and adjustments have increased its outstanding commitment to 235 777-9s and 35 777-8s, according to Aviation Week Fleet Discovery data. The airline now expects its first 777-9s in 2027, seven years later than originally planned.
While it waits, Emirates is extending the operating lives of its Airbus A380s and Boeing 777-300ERs, supported by a major cabin-refurbishment programme. Clark said the decision to decline the early 777Xs would not affect the airline’s network plans.
Lufthansa has also opted against some of its earliest-built 777Xs. Chief executive Carsten Spohr confirmed in August that the airline planned to take newer production examples instead.
The new aircraft remain central to its long-term fleet. Clark expects the A380 to continue flying with the airline into the early 2040s. Its eventual retirement will leave a capacity gap that the 777-9 cannot fill on a one-for-one basis: even in a dense configuration, the Boeing would carry around 150 fewer passengers than an Emirates A380. That difference is particularly important at airports where additional landing and departure slots are unavailable.
Clark has consequently been pressing Boeing to examine a larger version, provisionally called the 777-10. Emirates’ November 2025 agreement for another 65 777-9s included conversion rights to the 777-8 or a future 777-10 and supported an engineering-feasibility study of the proposed stretch. The larger aircraft could accommodate approximately 50 more passengers than the 777-9; it has not been launched as a production programme.
In Frankfurt, Clark also urged manufacturers to increase output as airlines compete for limited delivery capacity.
“Demand is going to exceed the capacity that the manufacturers can produce,” he said. “If it were me, I would build more factories. It’s like, with so much demand, build more airplanes.”