Boeing has submitted a request to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to waiver an emissions rule in order to sell an additional 35 777F freighters.
The rules in question will go live in 2028 and will limit sales of aircraft that do not meet certain emissions requirements to a certain number.
Under these rules, aircraft over a certain weight must meet fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions standards to certified.
Boeing said its current 777F exceeds the fuel efficiency limits and “will no longer be eligible for FAA airworthiness certificates” after 2027.
The OEM is developing a 777-8 Freighter which is expected to comply with the limits. However, Boeing said the 777-8F will not be available under after the rules come into effect — limiting customers ability to secure an aircraft model that is in high demand.
“With the dramatic growth of e-commerce and challenges in the maritime sector, the global air cargo industry continues to experience a capacity shortage in large widebody freighters, raising direct and indirect costs to consumers,” Boeing said.
The OEM said the global air freight market “relies on the 777F” and that additional models are needed after the rules come into effect to “maintain an uninterrupted supply of large freighters" that the market needs through to the 777-8F launch.
Boeing pointed to the aircraft's economic significance, with the filing highlighting that large widebody freighters transported over $260bn of the $600bn of goods exported by air cargo in 2024.
“Additionally, each 777F aircraft exported to a foreign customer contributes $440 million at catalogue value to a positive trade balance, thus, potentially more than $15bn worth of US export value could be lost without an exemption,” Boeing said.
Boeing also cited its importance to national security and the jobs provided by the 777 programme.
The company asked for exemption to be recognised internationally for customers operating under bilateral aviation agreements and International Civil Aviation Organisation emissions standards.
Boeing has asked the FAA to approve the exemption by May next year.