Ryanair CEO expects Boeing 737 MAX 10 certification in third quarter

By Adam Jourdan, Joanna Plucinska and Dan Catchpole

BRUSSELS/SEATTLE, March 19 (Reuters) - European budget carrier Ryanair RYA.I expects Boeing BA.N to get certification of its 737 MAX 10 aircraft in the third quarter, with deliveries set for early next year, CEO ​Michael O'Leary told Reuters on Thursday at an event in Brussels.

That is more specific timing than Boeing has provided.

Boeing did not immediately comment on O'Leary's statement.

Certifying and beginning deliveries of the largest of its 737 MAX family is critical for Boeing's financial recovery following years of crashes, crises and regulatory problems. The 737-10 competes with European rival Airbus's AIR.PA A321neo, which has been in service since 2017.

Ireland-based Ryanair ordered 150 MAX 10s in 2023, with options for another 150. The airline already operates high-density 737 MAX 8s.

Boeing plans to build 30 737-10s this year for delivery in 2027, Chief Financial ​Officer Jay Malave said on Tuesday at the Bank of America Global Industrials Conference in London.

Malave said the company is on track to certify the two remaining 737 MAX variants - the 737-7 and -10 - in the second half of the year.

"There's a number of aircraft systems and capabilities and functions that will have to ​be (flight-) tested" before the planes are certified by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, he said at the event.

Those include the models' autopilot systems and engine anti-icing systems.

Boeing has delivered more than 2,000 of the other two MAX variants -- the 737-8 and 737-9, which are in service around the world.