Emirates Airline says 'wings clipped' by Boeing delays

By Federico Maccioni

DUBAI (Reuters) - Emirates Airline is a "frustrated entity" because of a lack of planes, the carrier's president said on Wednesday, adding that it would now have an 85-strong fleet of Boeing 777-9X jets if the planemaker had been able to deliver them on time.

"We are expansionists, as you know. And we've had our wings clipped," Tim Clark told reporters at an event to mark delivery of Emirates' first Airbus A350 aircraft.

Emirates, the Middle East's biggest airline, has increasingly voiced its displeasure over delays and uncertainty plaguing delivery of the 777-9X jets, which were exacerbated by a weeks-long strike by Boeing factory workers.

Asked if there were any plans to review the orders in light of the delays, Clark said the company would just wait and see.

"I'm hoping that with the $21 billion they've just had injected into the company and the end of the strike, they're now working over the next few months to sort out what they're going to do. We watch that very closely," he said.

Boeing's new CEO said in October that the planemaker had told customers it expects first delivery of its 777X in 2026, owing to challenges in development, a flight-test pause and the work stoppage.

Clark also said that the new Airbus A350 aircraft would drive the next phase of Emirates' growth, enabling it to consider new destinations.

(Reporting by Federico Maccioni; Writing by Rachna Uppal; Editing by Louise Heavens and David Goodman)