Both A380 and 787 have bright futures

http://www.yeald.com/Yeald/a/33941/both_a380_and_787_have_bright_futures.html ^

[Conspiracy Guy]

We better wait a while. No way I'd get on a plane with that many other folks.

[null and void]

OK, let's wait until the first commercial flight lands safely...

[null and void]

Assuming it does, of course...

[Conspiracy Guy]

When does it go into service?

[null and void]

Dunno. I expect it will be in all the papers...

[Conspiracy Guy]

I'll stay away from it's flight path.

[null and void]

Good thinking!

[Conspiracy Guy]

I'm a private pilot. I have never been comfortable on commercial airliners. I feel like I'm in a cattle car. The feeling grows with the size of plane and number of fellow hostages/victims/cattle. I'll never board anything larger than a 747.

[Mr. Quarterpanel]

...and the 747 borrowed heavily from the C-5 military transporter design.

Except that the C5 was a Lockheed design. DOH!!!

[Rockingham]

No -- and I hope that is because a superior Boeing aircraft yet to appear knocks the A380 off its landing gear and steals its market. One wild guess is that it will be a blended wing body design, made with super light and stiff nanomaterials, and carrying twice as many passengers.

[Conspiracy Guy]

I'm for it.

[Cronos]

Oh, yeah, the 1500 number I can't agree or disagree with. Airbus will break even. Beyond that, no one can predict.

[Cronos]

As a frequent flyer all over the world, I have to agree with Boeings vision: I want to fly from Seattle to Nice, not Seattle to LA on a 737 or A320, then LA to Amsterdam on an A380, then Amsterdam to Nice on another 737 or A320. I don't want to go through customs with 800 of my closest friends, let alone sweaty, tired, cranky strangers. I've gone through baggage claim and customs when two 747s landed at the same time. It is not something I want to do again.

TRue -- so would I. But for frequent, shorter routes like say Dubai to Bombay or Shanghai to Hongkong, the demand would be for cheaper flights and that's what the A380 would aim for.

[sanchez810]

Over regulation

[SamAdams76]

I think Boeing is missing the boat on these large jetliners. Airbus is forecasting 1,500 of these super jetliners to be built but I think they are too conservative. I see between 10,000 to 15,000 super jetliners roaming the skies within 50 years.

Air travel is on the verge of a massive explosion as hundred of millions of people increase their living standards to where they can afford to fly. Also, as terrorism is being controlled (thanks to Pres. Bush), people will feel safer flying.

These super jetliners will bring down the cost of air travel. People in America will take weekend trips to Europe and Europeans will be taking weekend trips to Asia and vice versa. Trans-continental air travel will not be just for the rich anymore.

You may laugh now but 25 years from now, you will be able to travel from New York to London for under $100 (in today's dollars) on these super-jetliners. There will be so many of these super jetliners in the air that they will have to be stacked vertically in layers (separated by 5,000 vertical feet) so that more aircraft can use the same air routes.

[Conspiracy Guy]

Agreed

[patience+plumpudding]

That's if we make them fly on hydrogen generated by nuclear fusion plants. Oil is getting to expensive for this kind of scenario.