Last December 14, 2012, Boeing was in Qatar's performance cross hairs for the 787-8 program. Today they reap the sour grapes of that relationship with Mr. Akbar Al Baker. Qatar will not be a 787-10X launch customer. This is not disturbing, but understandable for Qatar to hang back. Please refer to my December 14, 2012 link on LiftnDrag (and its updated comments in Blue font), tying that article with Qatar's backing- off today as a 787-10x Launch customer. They are tired of Boeing's delays on its new Aircraft, until it settles down another year, when all the new airplane problems are solved. This is not to say that Boeing is building on a continuation of problems with the 787, but it is more on a strategic shift by Qatar, of standing back for a period on the -10, and wait for the "new airplanes" inappropriate burps to cease. They (Qatar) cannot and will not allow anymore disruptions concerning the 787. Therefore a strategic resting period until the -9's and the -10's prove themselves out on somebody else's US$ dollar. They currently have enough -8s on the order book to keep building on the future.
Boeing better heed Mr Al Baker's admonishment, from December 2012, during a time where the battery fires and grounding hadn't occurred yet. I can only imagine his angst during office hours for these last four months of delays.
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