Boeing is courting airlines for firm launch orders of its proposed reengined, rewinged 777X derivative, following board of directors' approval on May 1 of the overall design and program plans. The new twinjet is a radical revamp of the 777, more ambitious in scale than even the development of the 747-8, and is designed to open new space in the long-haul, high-capacity market, compete with the Airbus A350-1000 and replace the 747-400. Two major versions of the 777X are being considered, both of which will be powered exclusively by a new General Electric engine dubbed the GE9X. Boeing officially selected GE as its "engine partner" for the 777X in mid-March, having rejected competing proposals from Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce. At the time, Boeing also laid the groundwork for the marketing and development launch of the program by appointing former 737 MAX leader Bob Feldmann as the new vice president and general manager of the 777X program.
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