Posted on 12/30/2004 9:04:13 PM PST by COEXERJ145
SEATTLE, United States (AFP) - Vietnam Airlines has agreed to buy four wide-bodied Boeing 7E7 Dreamliner jets with a sticker price of around 500 million dollars.
The jets are scheduled for delivery to the Vietnamese national carrier in 2010 and will be used to expand its international traffic.
"The 7E7-8 will allow Vietnam Airlines to further develop our route structure to include city pairs that would otherwise not be financially viable," said the airline's Nguyen Xuan Hien in a statement issued here.
The deal between Boeing and Vietnam Airlines is expected to be finalised in the first quarter of 2005. While the planes are worth a total of 500 million dollars, bulk purchase deals are usually worked out.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Airline Heads Freak Out when they see the Mock Up. It that nice of a plane....
Not a big order, but good nevertheless. Airbus is doing its level best to put Boeing out of business, and they will not stop at anything. Which is why I always look to see what kind of plane a certain airline is flying. Only after I have exhausted all options will I set foot on an Airbus plane.
Any details on that plane?
And on more than one occasion they've publicly admitted that is their goal. If Boeing went belly up (at least in the commercial airline sector) it would destroy the U.S. economy and make the E.U. the master of all but regional air travel.
I have not been invited yet (fingers crossed) There is a window in the Lavatory though!
The next big place for civil aviation will be India.The Indian government recently allowed Private carriers(upto 3 are in operation with another 2 to come) to fly to all international destinations barring the Persian Gulf.At the same time,it is preparing to augment the fleets of the 2 state run carriers,Air India & Indian Airlines(regional) & in the longterm,disinvest government shares in those 2.Close to 50 new jets will be purchased for the 2 carriers,with the order likely to be split evenly between Boeing & Airbus(political pragmatism!!).Not to mention that the private carriers will also seek more long haul jets.
I think the Airbus A-380 will be one of the biggest white elephants in aviation history.
I've always figured that the A380 will be big in Asian markets, where they just need to pack people in like sardines on some routes, but I just can't figure how it'll be feasible anywhere else in the world. There isn't THAT much pent-up demand for long-range routes to justify a 525- to 800-seat airliner where 300-seat airliners aren't being filled now. I could see the freighter version being more successful than the passenger version.
As a technical achievement, it'll be impressive, and I do hope it flies and turns out well (I'm too much of a airplane geek not to hope that the A380 is a technical success). But practically, does the thing really make sense?
}:-)4
Wow, very cool aircraft! As airliners go, its about as cool as it gets, the only thing cooler would be a transonic or supersonic jetliner.
I flew VN earlier this year, on their ATR 72, great airline, and poised for a great future, along with a Vietnamese economy that is going through the roof.
Looking forward to seeing VN E7's at LAX and SFO!
I don't think so, there is a place for the 380, it will serve intra asia and asia-oceania well, high volume flights where there is much demand.
There is plenty of room for both planes.
A number of Arab airlines like Qatar airways,Emirates & Al-Ettihad have signed up for the A-380.This will help them in their core sectors like that to the Indian subcontinent & to a lesser extent to South East Asia and North America.Singapore airlines & a few Chinese airlines have also agreed to buy it & with Indian carriers planning to expand their fleets soon,the A-380 still has a chance.These airlines will be the biggest carriers for sometime to come,much bigger than several of their European or American counterparts in terms of passengers.As long as the A-380 gets orders,I wouldn't call it a blooper.
The one to watch will be the A350, Airbus's attempt to modify the A330 to compete with the 7E7. The only plane the A380 really goes head to head with is the B747-400, and even then, there's enough differences that they don't quite occupy the same market segment. But the Dreamliner and the A350 are aimed at the same ground. I expect it'll be quite a fight.
}:-)4
This, by the way, is known as "winning the Viet Nam war", just a lot later and a little differently than we imagined.
Good ol capitalism wins again.
Yes, I'm beginning to think so.
At first it looked like Airbus was going to take a much bigger bite out of Boeing's market share with the A-380...but cost over-runs and problems with weight are hurting the A-380....
JUST at the time when fuel costs have gone through the roof, making the Beoing 7E7 suddenly far more attractive to airlines around the world.
Orders for the 7E7 have started picking up.
The 380 will make a profit, it will be like the 747SP, but more than 45 of them will be built, it will be a good plane.
The big question will be the gross takeoff weight and dispach reliability, that is what killed the MD11.
As for the 350? Too early too tell, it seems like the 350 exists in too narro a gap between the A340 and the A330, both fine airplanes.
As for Boeing, I am very happy they pulled their head out, scrapped the Sonic Cruiser and the extended 747, they had no market.
The future is fuel efficient long range wide bodies, and narrowbodies that are as efficient on 400 mile trips as well as 2800 mile trips, where the 757 was 15 years ago and where the 737-700 is now.
Apple has infinitely better chances of putting Microsoft AND Intel out of business long before spAirbus could put anyone out of business. Even at that, Apple at least makes quality products. Overpriced, perhaps, but for the most part quality.
You're braver than I am if you would EVER step foot in an AB. I wouldn't taxi in one.
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