Boeing, GE analyzing potential durability issue on 777X engines

Feb 2 (Reuters) – GE Aerospace said on Monday it is analyzing a potential durability issue with the GE9X engine that powers Boeing’s 777X. 

Company officials cautioned that it was too early to draw conclusions about how significant the issue is.

The issue stems from a seal in the engine, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg disclosed the matter last week during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings conference call, saying the company still expects to begin deliveries in 2027. 

The 777X is already six years behind schedule, and Boeing has taken more than $15 billion in charges on the program.  

Boeing declined to comment on Monday.

The planemaker continues 777X flight testing. Yet so far in 2026, only two of the five test aircraft have flown, according to flight records on FlightRadar24, a flight-tracking website.

The engine, GE9X, was certified by the U.S. aviation safety regulator in 2020.

The finding could require the seal to be redesigned and retrofitted during future maintenance overhauls, the Bloomberg report said.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Jain in Bengaluru, Dan Catchpole in Seattle and Rajesh Singh in Chicago. Editing by Alan Barona and David Gregorio)