Boeing 797

[TallDutch]

Boeing is preparing a 1000 passenger jet that could reshape the Air travel industry for the next 100 years. The radical Blended Wing design has been developed by Boeing in cooperation with the NASA Langley Research &
lt; SPAN class=ecapple-style-span> Center . The mammoth plane will have a wing span of 265 feet compared to the 747's 211 feet, and is designed to fit within the newly created terminals used for the 555 seat Airbus A380, which is 262 feet wide.

The new 797 is in direct response to the Airbus A380 which has racked up 159 orders, but has not yet flown any passengers. Boeing decide to kill its 747X stretched super jumbo in 2003 after little interest was shown by airline companies, but has continued to develop the ultimate Airbus crusher 797 for years at its Phantom Works research facility in Long Beach, Calif.

The Airbus A380 has been in the works since 1999 and has accumulated $13 billion in development costs, which gives Boeing a huge advantage now that Airbus has committed to the older style tubular aircraft for decades to come.

There are several big advantages to the blended wing design, the most important being the lift to drag ratio which is expected to increase by an amazing 50%, with overall weight reduced by 25%, making it an estimated 33% more efficient than the A380, and making Airbus's $13 billion dollar investment look pretty shaky.

High body rigidity is another key factor in blended wing aircraft, It reduces turbulence and creates less stress on the air frame which adds to efficiency, giving the 797 a tremendous 8800 nautical mile range with its 1000 passengers flying comfortably at mach 0.88 or 654 mph (+-1046km/h) cruising speed another advantage over the Airbus tube-and-wing designed A380's 570 mph (912 km/h).

The exact date for introduction is unclear, yet the battle lines are clearly drawn in the high-stakes war for civilian air supremacy

[adam613]

http://www.snopes.com/photos/airplane/boeing797.asp

[cancidas]

i agree that the BWB is more efficient and whatnot, but airlines seem to prefer twin-engined-tubes. the BWB would be even more of a headache than the A380 is for ground facilies. i admit, i would love to see one flying but you've got to think about what the industry can support. somehow i see much more speculation than fact in that article.

also, the A380 has already flown pax... isn't she flying scheduled pax revenue routes already?

[moose135]

also, the A380 has already flown pax... isn't she flying scheduled pax revenue routes already?

Yes - if you check the link to the story on Snopes, you will see the story popped up in 2006, before the A380 began passenger service.

I think the biggest obstacle to a BWB passenger jet may be the lack of windows for the cattle (oops, pax) to look out of. With no outside references, it can get disorienting, and could cause some people to avoid flying on them if possible.

[SengaB]

I a sure they would charge more for window seats when you have 1000 PAX aboard.

Senga

[cancidas]

moose, i'm at work... the link got blocked and i couldn't read it in full.

i'm also curious about the interior configuration.... 3-4-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-4-3 ??

[PhilDernerJr]

FYI, that photo in that snopes articles is an edit taken from an Art Brett photo, and was used in an article.

Not kidding, that's a Bayswater shot, guys.

[cancidas]

wow, i've had that pic saved on my computer for a while, never knew it to be art's.

i think that the BWB design will be used as a freghter before it will ever need to be used as a pax airplane. i really don't see being commiting that much time, effort and money to a design that has yet to fly on such a large scale. yes, we know that lifting bodies work but it's been what, 50 years since they've first flown? i'm always for any technology that helps, and this would be great to see.

image the amount of freight this could carry, definately a A380 beater. with those huge sides you can 4 doors and offload nice and quick. ah... what it is to dream.

[mirrodie]

Reminds me of a book I read, forget the name but was about the "Stratton 797", a supersonic airliner that loses pressurisation and most of the pax become braindead on the plane.

having read it, I don't think I can stomach a 797 :oops:

[JetBlueAirwaysFan]

Reminds me of a book I read, forget the name but was about the "Stratton 797", a supersonic airliner that loses pressurisation and most of the pax become braindead on the plane.

having read it, I don't think I can stomach a 797 :oops:

The 787 has not even entered passenger revenue service yet!!! How could they be talking about a 797 if they are delaying the 787?

[moose135]

Reminds me of a book I read, forget the name but was about the "Stratton 797", a supersonic airliner that loses pressurisation and most of the pax become braindead on the plane.

That's "Mayday" by Nelson DeMille & Thomas Block. Funny you bring that up - it's about the only DeMille book I haven't read yet, and I recently found a copy and just started it a few days ago.