Boeing (BOE, Washington National) has restarted widebody deliveries to China after an almost two-month gap caused by a regulatory review, ferrying two B777-200Fs to Air China Cargo (CA, Beijing Capital) in late June 2024. Reuters reported that B737 MAX and B787 deliveries are also expected to restart shortly.
B-223S (msn 67834) and B-223T (msn 67835) were ferried from Everett directly to Beijing Capital on June 28 and June 30, respectively. They join the carrier's existing fleet of nine B777-200Fs. The airline has two more units of the type on direct order from Boeing.
The two B777 freighters were the first Boeing widebodies delivered to a customer from China since B-20EL (msn 63987), a B787-9 delivered to China Southern Airlines on May 10, 2024. The last B777 delivered to China in July 2023 was another B777-200F, B-223F (msn 67800), delivered to China Cargo Airlines. B737 MAX deliveries have been on hold since June 4, when B-208H (msn 61377) was delivered to 9 Air, according to the ch-aviation fleets module.
The American manufacturer has so far delivered a total of 26 aircraft to China in 2024, including twenty-two B737-8s, two B787-9s, and now the two B777-200Fs.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) halted deliveries of Boeing aircraft in May 2024 pending a review of new, more capable batteries that power updated onboard cockpit voice recorders (CVR).
Chinese customers have disclosed orders for 112 Boeing aircraft, mostly B737 MAX, as well as the two additional B777-200Fs for Air China Cargo, six B787-9s for Ruili Airlines, and five B787-9s for Okay Airways. However, customers from China, particularly the state-owned airlines, tend not to disclose their orders until delivery.