Boeing is in talks with other airlines for sales of its grounded 737 Max after receiving a 'humbling' 200-plane letter of intent from British Airways owner IAG at the Paris Airshow, its sales chief said on Thursday.

Senior vice president Ihssane Mounir also dismissed the launch of a longer-range single-aisle jet by rival Airbus as suitable for only a "sliver" of the market that Boeing hopes to address with a possible all-new mid-market plane.

He declined to comment on the timing of Boeing's own mid-market plane and said returning the grounded 737 MAX to service was its top priority.