Price will also determine the winner, the newspaper said.

With “price slashing” the tactic of choice lately…we shouldn’t rule out a Boeing win quite yet. 😉

Come on Boeing!! 😡

Why so angry? :confused:

Airbus edges ahead of Boeing in $6 bln Emirates order – report

AFX News Limited
05.01.2005, 03:17 PM
LINK

LONDON (AFX) – Airbus Industrie is edging ahead of Boeing Co in a race to secure a 6 bln usd (4.6 bln eur) order from Emirates airline for its A350 mid-range aircraft, according to The Business.

The newspaper did not name its source, but said Airbus’s A350 aircraft is ahead of Boeing’s 787 model for an order for up to 50 mid-sized aircraft.

Talks between Airbus and Emirates are taking place this weekend. The A350, an A330 derivative, is emerging as favourite because the Boeing flagship plane is too small for Emirates’ requirements. Price will also determine the winner, the newspaper said.

The order could be announced at June’s Paris air show, it said.

At the same time the UK government, desperate to boost manufacturing in the wake of carmaker MG Rover’s collapse, is preparing to offer controversial launch aid for the A350, the newspaper added.

Boeing fights back with a super jumbo

Tom McGhie, Mail on Sunday,
2 May 2005
LINK

BOEING is poised to launch a rival to Europe’s giant Airbus 380, the world’s biggest civilian plane which had its maiden flight on Wednesday.

The American giant is fearful that if it does not come up with a new model, it will effectively hand over the large-plane market to Airbus, in which BAE Systems has a 20 per cent stake.

Boeing’s 747 Advanced will be a larger and more economical version of the present jumbo jet and will increase the 380-seat capacity to 450.

Boeing is confident that it will be 20 per cent cheaper to operate than the Airbus 380, thanks to a new hightech engine and ultramodernwings. Orders for the 747 have fallen since Airbus announced it was building the 555-seater A380.

Boeing has argued for the past couple of years that the future of aviation is smaller, faster, long-range aircraft, so building a 747 Advanced will be regarded as a U-turn.

A firm decision is expected in the next three months.

Boeing Wins $7 Billion Contract in India

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
01 May 2005
VOA News

India’s state-run airline has decided to buy 50 new Boeing jetliners in a deal worth nearly $7 billion. Both U.S.-based Boeing and its European rival, Airbus, had been vying for the massive contract.

State-run Air India says the new jets from Boeing will include eight long-haul jetliners, 15 medium-range aircraft and 27 of the company’s newest model, the “Dreamliner,” which has yet to be produced.

The jets will be delivered over a 10-year period starting in 2006.

Senior Boeing officials in India called the contract “a major win”, and hoped it would influence future decisions by private airlines that are expanding their fleets.

India’s biggest aviation deal was clinched after a year of high-profile lobbying by Boeing and Airbus executives, as well as senior government officials from the United States and Europe.

Aviation analysts say both manufacturers had offered competitive bids, and it was probably politics that tilted the scales in favor of Boeing.

Kapil Kaul of the Center for Asia-Pacific Aviation in New Delhi says “geo-political considerations” are always factored into such large deals.

“Indo-American relationship is moving on a different platform…India and U.S. are getting closer, and I think this order is perhaps a byproduct of the stronger relationship between these two countries,” he said.

India’s booming economy is spurring demand for air travel and both state-run and private airlines plan to purchase hundreds of new jets over the next five years. New budget airlines are starting operations.

India’s first international budget airline, Air-India Express, made its maiden flight on Friday from Trivandrum in southern India to the United Arab Emirates.

The airline, an arm of government-run Air India, is starting operations with three mid-sized Boeing 737-800s, and plans to operate 40 flights a week from five Indian cities.

The country’s first budget airline, Air Deccan, began operations two years ago, and two more budget carriers are due to start flying later this month.

Mr. Kaul says the coming years will see fierce competition between Airbus and Boeing for this growing market.

“There is a compelling reason for investors, manufacturers, and suppliers to be here. Our estimate is that in another five years, we will add another 300 aircraft approximately, the investment in fleet plans over the next five years would be $15 billion,” Mr. Kaul said.

Last year, another state-run airline, Indian Airlines, decided to buy 42 planes from Airbus.

…as well as every other airline. :dev2:

Boeing selects GEnx engine for proposed 747 Advanced program

(Source: Boeing Co.; issued Apr. 25, 2005)

EVENDALE, Ohio — The Boeing Company has selected General Electric Company’s GEnx engine to power the proposed 747 Advanced airplane.

“We believe GE would provide the best value for the 747 Advanced if we launch the program,” said Boeing’s Jeff Peace, vice president – program manager, 747/767 Derivatives. “This is primarily because the GEnx offers the best balanced solution optimized for the 747 Advanced requirements. We look forward to working together with GE in successfully launching and delivering a great new airplane.”

The 747 Advanced is a 450-passenger airplane with an 8,000 nautical mile range. It will take advantage of breakthrough 787 technologies, including the GEnx engine, to provide even more payload and range than current 747s.

Boeing is forecasting a potential market for 250 to 300 airplanes. For the GEnx engine, that represents potential revenues exceeding $10 billion.

“We are thrilled by Boeing’s confidence in the GEnx design,” said Thomas Brisken, general manager of the GEnx program at GE Transportation. “Since 2000, GE has been engaged in the most aggressive jet engine development activities in its history. Utilizing our technology base, the GEnx will bring tremendous economic benefits to the 747 Advanced program.”

The GEnx, which is launched on Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, is the next-generation engine to succeed GE’s CF6 series, the best-selling engine family for widebody aircraft. The GEnx engine, currently under development, will produce 55,000 to 72,000 pounds of thrust. For the 747 Advanced application, the GEnx will be rated at 63,500 to 66,500 pounds of thrust.

While the GEnx engine is a new design, it is based extensively on technologies GE has invested in over several years. Based on the architecture of the GE90 engine, the GEnx is the only jet engine being developed with both the front fan case and fan blades made of composite materials to provide greater engine durability and dramatic weight reduction. The engine also features a new-generation combustor for efficient fuel mixing before ignition, which significantly lowers NOx levels.

The first full GEnx engine will go to test in 2006, with engine certification scheduled for 2007.