Boeing and Airbus | A phoney war | Economist.com

Boeing and Airbus | A phoney war | Economist.com: "Boeing is still far from committed to launching its faster aircraft, however: it is merely talking it up to attract interest among the travelling public and airlines. This is exactly what Airbus did for several years before winning enough orders to launch the A380. All the guff about the A380�s on-board gyms, casinos and saunas bears little relation to airline reality. Most launch customers are determined to pack in as many seats as possible, to maximise revenues. All the same, Airbus has taught Boeing that hype is now a key part of launching aircraft."

Boeing v Airbus | Towards the wild blue yonder | Economist.com

Airbus believes there is a market for around 1,500 A380s over the next 20 years,

He comforts himself that Airbus is nearly half way to reaching the 230 aircraft that it must sell in order to get its money back.
>Boeing v Airbus | Towards the wild blue yonder | Economist.com: "These are the first manifestations of a $10.7 billion programme to develop a rival to the Boeing 747,"

Airliners.net Civil Aviation: A345 And B772LR

Airliners.net Civil Aviation: A345 And B772LR: "The wing structure of a four engined aircraft has to be stronger, not to fly but to support the engines on when the aircraft is on the ground. Having engines farther out on the wing is a benefit in terms of bending relief while the aircraft is flying, but when there is no lift the wing has to support the extra bending moment of those engines plus fuel, plus its own structural weight...

As far as operations of 777-200LR and A340-500 are concerned the 777-200LR for any given payload and range burns less fuel, period dot. The 777-200LR basic aircraft structure is 55,000lbs lighter than the A340-500 so it requires less thrust to move through the air and it's GE90 engines are more efficient in terms of SFC than are the Trent 500's. Inside the 777 has more floor area and more flexible cabin space than does the A340 allowing wider seats and greater number of possible cabin class layouts..."

Airbus A380 five tons overweight at inauguration

Airbus A380 five tons overweight at inauguration: "The Airbus A380 superjumbo is five tonnes overweight but this is less than one percent of its maximum weight and airlines are not worried, John Leahy, commercial director at Airbus, said on Tuesday. "

A cut above

A cut above: "A cut above
The Boeing 787 has forced Airbus to reinvent its A330 as the A350 long-range twinjet family. And the manufacturer is convinced that the �4 billion it is spending will enable it to create a more than worthy rival
To the uninitiated, the A350 may seem like a knee-jerk reaction from Airbus to tackle the Boeing 787 with a warmed-over A330. The truth, however, is that the European manufacturer has been pushed by the market into spending �4 billion ($5 billion) to re-invent the current benchmark long-haul 250-seater as a demonstrably better aircraft than its predecessor in every measurement.
Not only is Airbus confident it can match Boeing's promises for the all-new 787 with a derivative aircraft, but it is also sizing the larger member of the two-model twinjet family to attack the smaller 777 model � the -200ER � by offering similar capacity and performance for a much lower cost per seat. 'We are positioning the 300-seat A350�900 to be a 777-200ER killer, because we are pushing the technology into an area our competitor did not want to go,' says A330/A340/A350 programme manager Olivier Andries.
He says Boeing is under pressure from some potential customers � notably Emirates � to make the stretched 787-9 big enough to replace the 777-200ER. So far, the US manufacturer has politely declined requests to create an in-house successor to a design that has been production for only 10 years.
When Airbus began serious studies into an A330-based counter-attack to the 787 last year, it started with a fairly simple derivative that would have retained much commonality with the A330/A340 family. � but the market told Airbus to try harder.
Speaking at the formal unveiling of the A350 last December, however, Airbus chief commercial officer John Leahy revealed that the launch conf"

777-Boeing plans next phase

Boeing plans next phase: "Boeing plans next phase
Boeing may have 'filled out the family in terms of derivatives models' for the 777, but it is far from finished trying to improve the aircraft, says Lars Andersen, 777 programme manager.

'Our next focus is to look at how to the keep the aircraft fresh in terms of technology and capability.'

This means seeing whether any of the features and technologies being developed for the mid-sized 787 Dreamliner could be applied to the 777.

'We are in the process of reviewing those technologies and additional capability going into the 787 and how and when to refresh the aircraft so it will continue to be a good partner with the 787,' says Andersen. 'There's a long list of things we are looking at right now.'

A business case will be created for each technology to decide which ones will work on the 777.

But Boeing is in no rush. 'We are looking at five years out and asking what would be our vision for how that aircraft looks sitting next to a 787,' he says. "

The Australian: Airbus says it'll deliver [August 12, 2005]

The Australian: Airbus says it'll deliver [August 12, 2005]: "He said Airbus had underestimated the work involved and had been hit by wire harness manufacturing problems.
'People are designing in-flight suites; they're designing private bedrooms; they're designing all sort so things that aren't just a modification of first class, business class and economy,' he said.
'That required every one of the launch airlines to have completely new drawings, completely new wiring harnesses and quite honestly we didn't keep up with all the work that was involved
in that.' "

The American Thinker

The American Thinker: "Despite the constant back-and-forth information flow customary between a manufacturer and its airline customers, nobody seems to know exactly (in public, at least) what the problems are which have delayed the A380 deliveries. Airbus failed to give adequate notice to its launch customers about the delay, suggesting that there may have been technological surprises at its root. "