Boeing unveils longest-flying jet
Enviado: Qua Fev 16, 2005 13:36
CNN: Boeing unveils longest-flying jet
Launch one month after world's largest plane unveiled
EVERETT, Washington -- Boeing has unveiled the world's longest-flying plane, the 777-200LR Worldliner, a jet that will be able to fly nonstop from London to Sydney.
The twin-engine airplane, when equipped with three optional fuel tanks, will be able to fly 9,420 nautical miles (17,446 kilometers), 1,500 nautical miles longer than existing planes.
Seating up to 301 passengers, the jets will be able to connect virtually any two cities in the world, Alan Mulally, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, told 5,000 people gathered at the company's plant in Everett, north of Seattle on Tuesday.
But while the planes can fly from London to Sydney, they will have to stop once to return via the same route to refuel, since they would be flying against high-altitude jet streams going back, a Reuters report said.
The plane's first flight is scheduled for early March. It is set to be delivered to Pakistan International Airlines in January 2006. Taiwan's EVA Airways is also a launch customer.
Boeing is battling to regain dominance of the commercial airliner market from Europe's Airbus and both companies have been touting very different visions of future air travel.
The Chicago-based aerospace company is betting that airlines will buy more mid-size jets to ferry passengers directly between cities over longer distances, cutting out the need to connect between flights.
Airbus is betting on size for the future, with the launch last month of the world's largest passenger plane: its double-decker super-jumbo A380.
The A380 planes, which will be able to hold up to 840 passengers, will normally carry around 550 passengers in a three-class configuration.
The Airbus approach is to fly passengers to major hubs and then ferry them to their destination in smaller planes.
Boeing's 777-200LR will compete directly with Airbus's A340-600 and A340-500, but have seat-mile costs 15 percent to 18 percent lower than those models, Reuters news agency quoted Boeing as saying.
The 777-200LR will also serve as the platform for the Boeing 777 Freighter, which will be able to carry 222,000 pounds of cargo.
The 777 family has captured over 60 percent of the market since the airplane's October 1990 launch, according to Boeing says.
More than 38 customers worldwide have ordered more than 675 777s, including 104 Longer-Range 777s. So far, two customers have ordered five 777-200LRs.
The planes are powered by two General Electric GE90-115B engines, which the company said is the world's most powerful commercial jet engine, with 115,000 pounds of thrust.
Launch one month after world's largest plane unveiled
EVERETT, Washington -- Boeing has unveiled the world's longest-flying plane, the 777-200LR Worldliner, a jet that will be able to fly nonstop from London to Sydney.
The twin-engine airplane, when equipped with three optional fuel tanks, will be able to fly 9,420 nautical miles (17,446 kilometers), 1,500 nautical miles longer than existing planes.
Seating up to 301 passengers, the jets will be able to connect virtually any two cities in the world, Alan Mulally, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, told 5,000 people gathered at the company's plant in Everett, north of Seattle on Tuesday.
But while the planes can fly from London to Sydney, they will have to stop once to return via the same route to refuel, since they would be flying against high-altitude jet streams going back, a Reuters report said.
The plane's first flight is scheduled for early March. It is set to be delivered to Pakistan International Airlines in January 2006. Taiwan's EVA Airways is also a launch customer.
Boeing is battling to regain dominance of the commercial airliner market from Europe's Airbus and both companies have been touting very different visions of future air travel.
The Chicago-based aerospace company is betting that airlines will buy more mid-size jets to ferry passengers directly between cities over longer distances, cutting out the need to connect between flights.
Airbus is betting on size for the future, with the launch last month of the world's largest passenger plane: its double-decker super-jumbo A380.
The A380 planes, which will be able to hold up to 840 passengers, will normally carry around 550 passengers in a three-class configuration.
The Airbus approach is to fly passengers to major hubs and then ferry them to their destination in smaller planes.
Boeing's 777-200LR will compete directly with Airbus's A340-600 and A340-500, but have seat-mile costs 15 percent to 18 percent lower than those models, Reuters news agency quoted Boeing as saying.
The 777-200LR will also serve as the platform for the Boeing 777 Freighter, which will be able to carry 222,000 pounds of cargo.
The 777 family has captured over 60 percent of the market since the airplane's October 1990 launch, according to Boeing says.
More than 38 customers worldwide have ordered more than 675 777s, including 104 Longer-Range 777s. So far, two customers have ordered five 777-200LRs.
The planes are powered by two General Electric GE90-115B engines, which the company said is the world's most powerful commercial jet engine, with 115,000 pounds of thrust.