Boeing today named James McNerney, the 3M chief executive, as the new head of the aviation giant.

The company had been searching for a chief executive since Harry Stonecipher was forced to resign in March, while the company embarked on a high-profile campaign to improve its image.

Mr McNerney, 55, who had been widely seen as the strongest outside candidate for the post, will become the third Boeing chief executive since December 2003. His appointment bypasses two internal candidates who head the company's largest business units.

Earlier this month, Boeing chairman Lew Platt said the board was down to a short list of "five or six" potential chief executives, including the head of the commercial division, Alan Mulally, and Jim Albaugh, the head of the company’s space and defence business.

Mr McNerney’s name was linked to the job shortly after Mr Stonecipeher’s departure. But in April he dampened speculation he would take the post, saying he was happy at 3M.

James Bell has served as Boeing’s interim president and CEO since Mr Stonecipher’s departure and will remain chief financial officer. Mr McNerney was also named board chairman and president.

"Boeing’s businesses are performing very well, and the board sought a CEO with the experience and credentials necessary to sustain that momentum and take the company to the next level," Mr Platt said. "Jim met all the board criteria."

Mr McNerney has been a Boeing director since 2001. Before joining 3M in 2001, he held executive spots at General Electric, including CEO of GE Aircraft Engines and GE Lighting and as an executive vice president of GE Capital.

Mr McNerney inherits a company performing well financially but still struggling to smooth over lingering tensions with the Pentagon and Capitol Hill.

Mr Stonecipher’s predecessor, Phil Condit, resigned in December 2003 as a result of defence contracting scandals that ultimately led to two Boeing executives - the ex-Air Force procurement official Darleen Druyun and chief financial officer Mike Sears - serving prison sentences.

Despite the recent turmoil, Boeing’s defence sales rose nearly 10 per cent annually in 2003 and 2004, its commercial airplane business is on the rebound and its stock price has doubled in two years.

The Chicago-based company also is locked in a tight competition and subsidy rows with Airbus, the European group.

The battle features Boeing’s planned fuel-efficient 787 against its rival’s A380 "superjumbo."

"Clearly one of the major challenges he will face is how you beat out Airbus," said analyst Paul Nisbet with JSA Research. "And there’s certainly still fence-mending to do on the military side. [Mr McNerney] seems very qualified to keep their momentum going."

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