By Scott Hamilton • Editor at Large
September 17, 2026
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The FAA today approved Boeing’s application to allow the production of 35 more 777Fs after December 31, 2027.
This is the deadline the FAA adopted to implement a 2017 decision by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) limiting emissions and noise pollution after that date. Governments had to adopt the new standards, and the FAA did so in 2022.
FedEx has been mentioned as a potential buyer of more 777Fs now that Boeing may continue production after Dec. 31, 2027. Photo credit: FedEx
The standards affected the Boeing 767-300ERF and 777-200LRF freighters. Production of the 767 ended this year. (Production of the KC-46A military tanker, based on the 767-200ER, is unaffected.) Production of the 777F, now colloquially referred to as the “metal wing” 777 freighter, was due to end next year.
But the long delay in developing the 777X-based freighter, the -8F, upset plans for a seamless transition from the metal wing aircraft to the new-generation 777-8F. Now, the target date for the -8F is 2030.
However, some 777-9 customers—facing seven years or more of delays for their passenger models—want Boeing to delay freighter deliveries so it can deliver more passenger models. Certification of the 777-9 is now expected next year. This will be seven years later than the original goal in January 2020.
But this isn’t the only challenge Boeing faces now that the metal wing freighter production can continue.
