To The Point

Since the Boeing 767 went into service back in 1982, the type has evolved, gained in size and range and reached parts of the globe previously served only by tri- and quad jets like the L1011 Tristar, DC10 and early 747 variants.

An interesting fact can be found on Boeings site about the 767 family:

• The 767 family has accumulated more than 27 billion nautical miles on 7.7 million flights, and has carried two billion passengers. About 1.3 million of the 7.7 million flights were on extended operations (ETOPS) rules.

Image courtesy of Boeing.com

For almost 30 years, the backbone of long haul twin jet operations is based on proven and successful 767 flights - from across the Atlantic, across the wide berth of the US itself to the Asia-Pacific and Oceanic regions. The type was also the first jet to be both 120 and 180 minutes ETOPS certified.

Airbus too has replicated much success with the A330-200 airplane, although much of the 767 family has already been delivered and airlines look to new solutions in the 777 and 787 families.

Image courtesy of albspotter

It was largely on this success that the equally successful 777 family continues to dominate the very extreme long ranges and point to point services undertaken by a variety of operators today. It was also the first airplane ever to receive 180 minutes ETOPS at service entry. The type has gone one to shatter a plethora of records while forming the basis of many airlines’ key airplane in their fleets.

Moving on to the future, with a record order book already, the 787 further expands the possibilities and opportunities for point-to-point (P2P) travel.

For many years, Airbus had argued against long haul travel in twin engine airplanes to boost sales of its failed A340-600, despite empirical data gathered over the last quarter of a century that illustrates higher engine shutdowns returning to airport rates of quads. It resorted to unfounded comments about safety and then suddenly instigated the biggest “u-turn” in modern history to embrace the concept with its forced reactionary move against the 787 to develop the $16bn A350.

As we all know, the risk of engine failure statistically goes up with quad jets, not down. The propaganda door swings both ways, doesn’t it?

Leaving aside the constraints and slower pace of airport development for a moment - P2P travel has become a cornerstone for both full fare and low cost airlines. The ability to get to passengers to their destination quicker than ever before comes down to the sheer engineering prowess of engine makers - providing more reliable and efficient engines to power various jets through the skies.

Images courtesy of Boeing.com

It comes as virtually no surprise then that the most prized segment for the next twenty years after single aisle airplanes is that within which the 777, 787 and A350 fall into. Just as the A330-200 has successfully supplanted older 767 jets, the newer Airbus A350 models will likely force older 777 models into retirement too. Using information from Airbus’ Global Market Forecast 2006, the manufacturer concurs that demand for twin aisle airplanes will account for 42% of the total value of new airplanes between 2006 and 2025.

Given that Airbus has no direct 787 competitor, it will be interesting to see both how the A350 copes with customer demand and whether growth variants of the 787 are a match for its bigger Airbus rival. As for the 777, Boeing has for the time being chosen not to worry about the type’s future until the A350 is better defined so as to either update or replace the family with a new family of airplanes.

So what does P2P mean for the average passenger?

Image courtesy of BAA

While some passengers will prefer to avoid congested hubs, plagued by years of chronic underinvestment and inherent delays, others perish at the though of flying for more than 15 hours in one fell swoop.

At the start of this month, Emirates launched its new non stop service to Sao Paolo using a 777-200LR. Flight time is just under 16 hours. Cabin improvements that can be found on the 777-200LR and 777-300ER make such long journeys more comfortable.

Image courtesy of Boeing.com

With the 787, higher cabin pressurization will equally ease passenger fatigue. With increasing liberalisation between major nations, such direct flights will be more frequently offered - bypassing those congested hubs and doing away with the need to refuel and kill time sat in airport lounges waiting for a connection. While jets like the Airbus A380 will be confined to shrinking hub-to-hub operations, many people will invariably fall out of favor with flying in twin deck airplanes. Perhaps this too is part of the reason why the 747-8I model has not sold as well as its stablemate, the 747-8F.

Image copyrighted and owned by BOEING777 and FleetBuzz.com

The prospect of aging, congested airports being unable to cope with 500 or more passengers disembarking off A380’s is all too real. In an age where security concerns are prevalent throughout the globe, queuing for immigration, customs and airport checks will be daunting as waiting at the carousel for ones luggage to emerge. Naturally, this problem would exist at smaller airports too, catering for an array of P2P flights, but perhaps not to the same magnitude or intensity.

Getting to the point, new technology has allowed us all to get to where we are going. Faster, direct and with little effort as possible. While demand for frequencies will likely only increase, the slower lead time in airport development and infrastructure investment will push customers into more direct solutions for their travel requirements. The prospect of that 16 hour flight doesn’t look at all bad when you get to where you are going.

Afterall, the shortest distance between to points is in a straight line - so why deviate? Of course, real world routings do not have this concept of “straight line” flying, it’s all about getting to where you want to be, isn’t it?

1 comment October 3rd, 2007