Boeing 747-8F et I

Lufthansa discloses 747-8I configuration
By Jon Ostrower
Lufthansa plans a 386-seat configuration of its new 747-8I when it arrives in its fleet in first quarter of 2012.

The stretched jumbo jet will be configured with eight first class seats, 80 business class seats and 386 economy seats.Nico
Buchholz, executive vice president, Lufthansa Group Fleet Management,
says the carrier plans a new on-board product, which altered the
available space on the aircraft.

"We started with slightly above 400 [seats], but that was the old
standard, things evolve," he says, "We find things which we can do to
the passengers - which are positive - and this usually does cost a
couple of seats."

Details of the new on-board product were not disclosed.Positioned
between the 526-seat A380 and twin configuration 306- and 345-seat
A340-600, the 747-8I will occupy a space that will allow the carrier to
begin partly replacing its 23 747-400s and seven -400 Combis.

Nico Buchholz says no timeline for the fleet's retirement has been
identified, though market requirements will dictate the pace of the
747-400s' exit from the fleet.

Additionally, final route selection has not yet been determined, adds Buchholz, though he says any of the
carrier's roughly 45 long-haul destinations are candidates.

Rumored excess weight and engine fuel consumption shortfall on the 747-8I
notwithstanding, Buchholz says the new jumbo will be able to meet the
carrier's requirements."

All the mission profiles we want, we can meet," says Buchholz, "And actually we have very onerous points where we
look for mission profiles, sometimes routes we don't fly, but we
pinpoint certain areas to find if there are any weaknesses, and then we
are extremely pleased when we don't find them. And I'm stil pleased."

Buchholz anticipates a performance improvement package in the years to come and
says they will have no operational impact on the aircraft "except we may
save a little bit of fuel," he says.

The first 747-8I is slated to fly in the "early spring" - late March or April - and is expected to
be certified in the third or fourth quarter following a 600h flight test
campaign.

A total of 33 747-8I aircraft have been ordered, with
Lufthansa accounting for the bulk of the backlog with 20. Korean Air
holds orders for five of the aircraft, along with eight slated to be
configured for head of state and VIP missions.

http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2011/02/13/353111/lufthansa-discloses-747-8i-configuration.html

art_way a écrit:Rhooo Rasta tu exagères De toute façon tu comprends rien...

The announcement Monday during the Asian Aerospace exhibition in Hong Kong that Air China has ordered five 747-8 Intercontinentals was good news for Boeing, which has seen the passenger version of the newest edition of its iconic intercontinental transport lag behind freighters.

But the news set some observers wondering what inducements Boeing might have offered to win the deal. “Can you say, ‘Compensation for 787 delays?’” piped in one of them.

This line of thinking suggests that the discounts were very deep on the new four-engine jet because of Air China’s discontent over delivery delays for Boeing’s two-engine wonder.


It should be noted that Air China is no stranger to the 747. It bought its first in 1986 and ordered 16 over the years, including 14 747-400s.

Those who have followed the 787 program might recall that when Air China and other Chinese carriers signed their initial intent to buy the new plane, Boeing officially changed its name from 7E7 (“E” for efficient) to 787. At the time, company officials noted the happy coincidence that the number eight just happens to be fortuitous in the Chinese language.


The signing ceremony was in Washington and a big deal. The general agreement – formalities came later – was penned by Yang Jiechi, then China’s ambassador to the U.S., and Alan Mulally, then Boeing Commercial Airplanes’ CEO.

With a list-price value of $7.2 billion (reportedly the largest ever signed for new aircraft by Chinese authorities), it easily exceeded another deal of the moment – a $1.4 billion commitment from China Southern Airlines to buy five Airbus A380s.

Six Chinese carriers were involved in the 787 order, but when Yang and Mulally met the exact distribution of the 60 planes was not announced.

But it was clear what China did want by being one of Boeing’s early 787 customers. It wanted at least one of the shiny new airplanes to carry passengers to the Beijing Olympics in August 2008.

Well, we know how that worked out.

Once the order was completed, Air China emerged as the buyer of 15 long-range 787-9s powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 1000s. With the 747-8I it will switch powerplants to a derivative of the Trent’s competitor on the 787, the General Electric GEnx-2B67. The GEnx is the sole powerplant on 747-8s.

Here’s some other comments by people who don’t want to be quoted but who say they have heard from within Air China’s ranks (the airline isn’t talking). Some of the new 747-8s will be assigned to a VIP role for senior Chinese government officials. Apparently one reason for that assignment is that they prefer four-engine transports, thus ruling out any of the 19 777-300ERs that Air China has on order or the 10 777-200s it already flies.