Posted on 11/22/2005 12:28:10 PM PST by Righty_McRight
DUBAI (AFP) - US manufacturer Boeing's new 747-8 jumbojet will not impact on sales of European aircraft maker Airbus' A380 giant plane, according to the head of the European aerospace and defence group EADS.
"The 747-8 is more designed for the cargo market and therefore we do not anticipate that it will impact sales of the A380," Noel Forgeard, chief executive officer of EADS which has an 80-percent stake in Airbus, told local media on Tuesday.
"In a passenger configuration the A380 can carry 555 passengers still more than the 747-8," he said.
The 747-8 launched by Boeing in September offers 450 seats, while Airbus' A380 can carry between 555 and 840 passengers.
Addressing concerns about the longstanding dispute between the US and the European Union over allegations of illegal subsidies, Forgeard said: "there are no subsidies, Airbus receives refundable loans which are repaid with interest."
"We do not wish to prolong this matter and we are very flexible on reaching a settlement," he said.
Forgeard, a former president of Airbus, has recently been named co-president of EADS together with German Thomas Enders, following a long dispute among shareholders.
"We work well together and are different personalities, however I think it is clear that it would be easier if there was one," Forgeard said.
The Boyd group thinks differently
A-380 WhaleJet: Even Less Demand Than Earlier Predicted
We are now revising our current Global Fleet Demand Forecast to accommodate the decision by Boeing to build a follow-on to the 747.
As before, the net in-fleet requirements for airliners in the +400 seat category is not expected to be particularly robust in terms of growth. However, the advent of the 747-8 represents the injection of new dynamics in the demand mix.
First, if this slightly larger model has significantly better economics, it would face strong demand mostly as a one-on-one replacement for the -400, as well as some A-340s. Since used widebodies will likely have very limited aftermarket demand as passenger airplanes, this would tend to shove a lot of additional 747-400s into the cargo conversion arena, which could have no telling what effect on residual values.
However, one effect it could have would be to yank just enough potential orders out from under the A-380 to make that program really, really financially challenging for Airbus. Just a dozen feet longer than the -400, the new 747 would not face a world where relatively few airports could handle it, making it a much more flexible aircraft than the A-380. And if the 747-8 can deprive the A-380 of say, 50 or 60 orders it would have otherwise registered, it could make sleeping at night much more difficult for the folks at Toulouse.
You Want the A-380? Or What's Behind Door #3? Boeing by no means holds all the cards. The A-380's flying now. The 747-8 is at least three years away. That means the pressure's on Airbus to peddle as many A-380s as fast as possible in the next 12 months to keep potential customers from deciding to wait for the new Boeing.
So for airlines, it's going to be let's-make-a-deal time with the local Airbus salesman. That, however, puts pricing pressure on Airbus - pricing pressure created by what right now is essentially a concept airplane.
The pressure is also on at Airbus to assure that the A-380 doesn't disappoint when it comes to promised performance and delivery dates. Otherwise, the Europeans will find that they've essentially built the successor to the MD-11.
Regardless, The 747-8 Will Take A Toll. As it stands, the A-380 has about 160 orders, give or take what might be announced this week at the air show in Dubai. With the 747-8 on the horizon, our initial pass at global fleet needs now points to a demand for fewer than 350 A-380s over the next 15 years.
http://www.aviationplanning.com/asrc1.htm
/john
EADS-whistling-past-the-graveyard ping!
Thousands of Concorde orders in the wings! /sarc
It just shows how incompetent EADS is. What do you expect from a socialistic enterprise?
Or even worse having to deal with 800 passengers in the baggage claim area then contending with thousands of of people from other flights to go through customs.
Yep, imagine 3 or 4 A-380s arriving within minutes of each other, you could have up to 3000 people milling around 4 baggage carousels and lined up at 3 customs gates (that always seems to be all that are manned when I pass through).
I'd expect a few "postal" moments.
Isn't that a major league faux pas for the Socialsti?
They're more than socialistic. EADS has a bureaucracy that rivals the Soviet Union's. The assignment of staff is all politics (the correct balance of Germans, Brits, Frogs, Italians, Belgians, etc.) and they reorganize every 18 months -- meaning, the management spends 12 months out of 18 either jockeying and planning for the next reorganization, or figuring out how to operate the company after the last reorg.
I once attended a briefing by an EADS Director(pretty far down the management chain) and the first 30 minutes was spent going over the organization. The briefer had no idea that the names of the idiots on top was of zero interest to us.
Co-presidents? Ought to work as well as when Billary was in the White House. I am thinking here of the fights they had, including Hillary throwing the ashtray at Bill. Wonder if the Secret Service thought they should charge her with an assassination attempt, as she hurled the ashtray and said, "I want to kill you, Bill."
OMG! As if!
So for airlines, it's going to be let's-make-a-deal time with the local Airbus salesman. That, however, puts pricing pressure on Airbus - pricing pressure created by what right now is essentially a concept airplane.
Excuse me. Airbus doesn't have lots of slots available on its A380 line for 2009 delivery anyway. They are already six months behind on their original orders. Boeing has lots of latent manufacturing capacity on its 747 line which was already paid for decades ago. Currently they are building just one 747-400 a month which is the minimum rate to keep the line open. I bet some first time new build 747 customers like UPS and Volga-Dnepr got some really good prices on 747 freighters just to keep the line moving while the 747-8 is in developement and testing. If Boeing gets the orders, they could easily surge their production to 3 or 4 per month possibly more. I hear Airbus is having lots of trouble increasing capacity for its A380 line.
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