Primaris to Buy Boeing 7E7-8s, 737-800s

By Associated Press
Published October 21, 2004, 9:27 AM CDT

SEATTLE — Primaris Airlines Inc. has announced plans to buy 20 Boeing 7E7-8 Dreamliners and 20 737-800s, a deal worth $3.8 billion at list prices, the new low-cost business carrier and the Boeing Co. announced Thursday.

According to a joint news release, Primaris, based in Las Vegas, also agreed to take options for 25 additional 737-800s and 15 7E7-8s, Boeing’s newest model, which is scheduled to go into production in 2006. Primaris plans to outfit the 737s with 94 seats and the 7E7s with about 150 seats, both in an all-business configuration.

The deal is the biggest for the Dreamliner since a launch order of 50 planes from All Nippon Airways in April.

According to the news release, Boeing, based in Chicago, and Primaris expect to complete contract negotiations by the end of the year. Primaris is planning to begin service focusing on business travel on domestic routes, like Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Chicago, next year and on international routes in 2006.

The first 20 737s are for delivery between 2007 and 2010 and the 7E7s between 2010 and 2013. The 737s are to be equipped with CFM56-7B engines and an engine choice for the 7E7s will be made over the next month, Primaris said.

Battling to regain world supremacy in commercial jet manufacturing from Airbus SAS, Boeing executives have forecast 200 orders for new planes this year. The first 40 planes in the Primaris deal, once it is finalized, would bring the total to nearly half that number but many orders are often announced late in the year.

Airlines typically receive substantial discounts from list prices on large orders, especially for new models when the manufacturer is eager to show demand as quickly as possible.

“Primaris is the first low-cost carrier to select the 7E7 Dreamliner. Its decision validates the 7E7 Dreamliner as a catalyst for new business models,” said Michael B. Bair, head of the 7E7 program.

Other customers for the new twin-engine plane Air New Zealand, a long-haul airline, and two European charter- and scheduled-service carriers, Blue Panorama and First Choice.

Contenders power up for 747 fight

Flight International
12 Oct 2004

Engine manufacturers begin preparations to meet Boeing proposal for new Advanced derivative of widebody

The competition to power Boeing’s proposed 747 Advanced derivative is starting amid signs that using unchanged baseline 7E7 engines will not be possible, and that the General Electric/Pratt & Whitney Engine Alliance may enter the fray.

In addition, the relatively restricted market potential of the new derivative, added to the cost of developing a refanned version of an existing or planned powerplant, indicate a winner-takes-all competition. Boeing says “no decision has been made on how many suppliers” will be selected and says it is “still studying several configuration options. We are not ruling out refanning 7E7 engines for a better match.” It adds it therefore does not “rule out a minor derivative” version of the GEnx or Trent 1000 7E7 engines now in development, or possible proposals from “P&W or the Engine Alliance”.

Engine Alliance president Lloyd Thompson says: “We are supporting those studies and are ready, willing and able to propose the [GP7200] engine on whatever Boeing is ready to do.” The Alliance, which was formed for Boeing’s major stretch attempt on the 747 in the mid-1990s, then designated -500X/600X, says its original mission statement “is good as long as it is a four-engined aircraft with more than 450 seats. The proposed 747 variant meets these qualifications.”

P&W says the technology developed for its PW-EXX 7E7 bid “continues to be spread across the product line and we continue to have ongoing discussions with Boeing about new aircraft programmes.”

The main contenders are still believed to be GE and Rolls-Royce, both of which are studying refanned 7E7 engine variants to reduce fan diameter from 2.79-2.84m (110-112in) to around 2.56-2.64m. The reduction is required after analysis revealed continuing configuration issues with the outboard engine at the 7E7 fan diameter because of interference drag and potential aeroelastic effects.

Boeing plans to brief airlines on the new 747 derivative in Hong Kong later this month.

GUY NORRIS / LOS ANGELES

Could you stop the stupid A vs B debate ??

Why? We all know that that’s what any topic regarding large commercial aircraft really boils down to anyway. 😉

Other excellent threads started on this topic…

Boeing “hints” at a 747 Advanced

Larger 747 remains possibility says Boeing

Boeing’s response to A380

Boeing: new projected data on 747ADV…

😎

Interesting stuff. Will be good to see the figures Airbus publish for this “A350” to see whether Boeings claims are substantiated or not.

Yeah, like either company wouldn’t stretch the “figures” to suite their own agenda….pull-ease! :rolleyes:

Sounds cool! I think Airbus is better then Boeing though.

You obviously could use a cold shower and hot cup of reality. 😉

Only the US would think that they can defeat people’s dissatisfaction through military power. :confused:

I suppose we should just give in to their demands…(convert to Islam and deconstruct Israel as a nation-state)…and then this will all go away?