Originally Posted By: fdcg27
I wasn't seriously accusing you of being a Boeing fanboy Astro.
I was having what I thought was a little gentle fun with you.
No Boeing sales guy could have made a better case for the 787.
WRT the A350, many industry observers have come to think that Airbus would have been ahead had it followed through on the original design proposal, since that would have been a program heavily based upon the A330 and could have been built in volume long before the 787 became available, cutting the 787 sales campaign off at the knees.
I'd not give too much credit to a leasing guy, since aircraft lessors ultimately buy and lease those aircraft that the airlines want, not what they think the airlines should be flying. The airlines are the customers making the monthly lease payments, so it's their call entirely.
You've failed to speak to the financial disaster that is the 787 program, one that I regret to see as a Boeing shareholder. Sad that an airframe manufacturer can have a smash hit seller that will never make any money.
I differ with you on the A380, since it does offer the lowest seat mile costs available for those few carriers who can fill those seats at sufficient yields and sustain a large enough fleet of them. It also offers the potential for lots of premium priced real estate, neither of which are possible with something as small as a 787.
Of course, there is only one such carrier in the world.
Imagine an airport where the banks consist entirely of large widebodies, many of which are A380s.
The current 737 has a strong order book, although this is probably the last possible development of this ancient design. There are some pilots who actually prefer it to the single aisle Airbus and as a passenger I can't see much difference between the two other than the annoying hydraulic noises you hear in the cabin of the Airbus.
I know that the -900 has awful takeoff characteristics, but it functions just fine at the airports it's operated from.
I also know that as a passenger I prefer the old school single aisle MD derivatives, since they are now a dying breed.
Oh. I completely missed your intent...and took the comment as straight up. I took no offense however, and thought I answered straight up...