787 Dreamliner

I have never seen an airplane as sexy as the 787. :D

There are few transnational industrial feuds that are as heated and bitter as that between Airbus and Boeing. In an industry that measures itself on orders and deliveries rather than revenue and sales, Boeing has seen its traditional dominance eroded by Airbus over the past decade because of the latter's technologically advanced avionics, fly-by-wire controls, and standardized cockpits requiring minimal pilot retraining between aircraft. There is also the tenuous WTO trade dispute, with Boeing accusing EADS (European Aeronautic Defense and Space), the parent company of Airbus, of receiving direct government subsidies (which it does) and EADS accusing Boeing of receiving indirect government subsidies through lucrative defense contracts (which it does). Despite Airbus' recent dominance, Boeing is set to fly past Airbus this year in firm orders for new aircraft thanks to its innovative new plane, the 787 Dreamliner and the understanding of the competitive environment that it represents.

Dating back to the ill-advised, reattempt at the glory of empire called Concorde, European aerospace companies have suffered from the folly of doing things because they can, instead of what the market will bear. The A380 is a perfect example of misreading the current market environment, and Airbus will pay dearly for it. Yes, it is an amazing technological feat to have huge, 800-person-capacity vessel fly through the air, but does it fit the current industry landscape? The answer is simply, no.

Boeing has spent years listening in detail to the requests of its customers, and not only its airline customers, but its capital leasing customers and end users: passengers like us. After assimilating all of the different requests from its constituencies, Boeing started from scratch-that is to say, from a blank computer screen, and decided to build the first plane designed for the 21st century.

Boeing's answer is the 787 Dreamliner. The 787 serves its airline customers in several ways. Firstly, the wings and body will be made of new composite material, which is lighter and stronger than aluminum - essentially, super-strong plastic. Fuel efficiency will be increased because it weighs less, and the wings will be smooth flat surfaces without rivets which will reduce drag, further increasing efficiency. In addition, the composite material does not corrode like metals do and will last twice as long. The electrical and entertainment systems will be built into the floor, rather than into the seat, so the airline can change the configuration of the seats for each flight. With this innovation, airlines can switch out first-class seats for coach, or vice versa, depending on the load.

Anyone who has flown to Europe on a U.S. carrier lately has already felt the beginning of the long-haul point-to-point trend. Continental flies a single-aisle 757 from Newark to Barcelona. You can now fly a little 737-700 across the Atlantic Ocean (Lufthansa's all-business-class service from Newark to Dusseldorf uses one). Many markets cannot bear the capacity of a 747, let alone the A380, and that doesn't even consider the many airports that don't have the capability to service the A380 due to its size. You used to have to connect in Madrid to get to Barcelona because the market wasn't big enough for both using larger planes. Now these markets can be served non-stop with smaller aircraft without costly layovers, landing fees, maintenance and service staff, and gate leasing. The 787 falls in this category: a twin-engine aircraft that can fly almost anywhere on earth with 210 -330 passengers depending the model and configuration at a cheaper cost per seat mile than any other plane in the world.

The 787 was also designed with leasing companies in mind. As startup airlines all over the world begin operations, they are increasingly turning to leasing companies such as International Lease Financing Corp. (part of AIG) and GE's Aircraft Financing Division to lease aircraft rather than succumb to the huge capital requirement of outright ownership. In response to this, Boeing has designed the 787 to be easily transferred from one airline to another. Many of the interior cabin spaces will be standardized, and as mentioned above, the electrical and entertainment systems will be built into the floor so the entire aircraft can be refitted in a matter of hours. New owners will just need to wait for the exterior paint job to dry. Possibly the most innovative change is the engine bracket on the wing. Since different airlines use different engines, Boeing required that the GE and Rolls Royce engines be interchangeable and could be switched out within 24 hours. A job that used to take months and many hundreds of thousands of dollars will now take only hours. When a leasing company retakes control of a 787 and wants to re-lease it to a new customer, the change will be much cheaper and faster. And if an airline wants to service an engine, it can switch it out and substitute a new one during the servicing, requiring less money-losing time on the ground...........

theres more....but that is long enough.

Boeing rules!!!!

I'm a Boeing fan but I don't poo poo Airbus's products, with the exception of the 777 and 747 Airbus's planes are by far more comfortable to fly from a passenger perspective, wider, taller, and quieter. The 737s, 757s, and the 767s are loud and the 757s are cramped as hell.

From an economics standpoint Boeing always wins. The A320 is a joke when you compare the tech sheet with the 737, look at both AirTran and jetBlue, AirTran's dispatch rate is much higher then jetBlue's, why, the 737s and 717s are just more versatile when it comes to getting the job done.

I agree with you on the A380, its nothing more then the spirit of the Concorde and will not be a trend setting like the 747 was. Time to put the whale jet on the endangered species list.

don't get me wrong....Airbus isn't terrible. but...it certainly isn't mediocre either :wink:
i don't ride a bus on the ground, and i definately won't ride a bus in the air. :lol:

Boeing owns!

I actually feel that most Boeing planes are more comfortable than the Airbuses I have flown on. I guess it all really depends on the airline.

One of the reasons I think that Boeing is better than Airbus because it's more cuddley...even the name......hah. I'm a female....can ya tell?? :P

well if i based it solely off of today alone for narrow body the bus wins i had a 734 this morning broke down jumped on a 321 got there and than watched another 734 break down at CLT and for comfort the bus wins in my mind myvote is for the bus domestic and the a330 but for ultra heavy long range the t7 and 747 get the vote

You wrote a pretty convincing piece to start this thread. Nicely done. I'd have to say I agree with just about every point. But I still fly Airbus on occasion and actually like all their models.