Having amassed more than 450 flight test hours so far and received its expanded Type Inspection Authorisation (TIA) on June 14th, Boeing is currently conducting nautical air mile testing (NAMS) on the third test aircraft, dubbed RC521, to verify the 747-8F’s fuel burn performance.

Early test results are positive and better than originally envisaged, with both the GEnx-2B engines and the 747-8F’s new wings contributing toward this goal, further reaffirming the robustness of the aerodynamic design of its wing and that of the engines.

Both Boeing and General Electric have noted that it is too early to conclude whether results match their intended projections.

“NAMS testing is underway. It is a little early to make any determinations on the results,” a Boeing spokesman said.

“We can’t confirm that [the better performance] at this time. It’s still too early on in testing. However, the combination of the engines and the wings are key drivers in the 747-8 increased performance compared to the 747-400.”

All images courtesy of Boeing

While the better-than-expected performance is not anticipated to be confirmed by the airframer soon, Boeing did reaffirm that the GEnx-2B engines and the 747-8’s new wings had contributed to its economics.

Coupled with the ongoing weight-saving program, the 747-8F is expected to exceed its contractual obligations which may result in an increase in range/payload.

“Our team has identified weight-reduction opportunities and we are implementing plans to take advantage of those opportunities. The 747-8 Freighter will meet the payload and range targets, while providing customers with the forecasted economic benefits,” confirmed Boeing.

Should these weight savings be realised, the sales of the 747-8F will hopefully be helped and improve the program’s forward-loss position facilitated by new orders.

Despite the loss, Boeing has not been desperate to sell and had rejected several 747-8 deals last year based on pricing differences with several customers. Boeing is now focused on program profitability despite the fact that the last major 747-8F order came 30 months ago from Dubai Aerospace Enterprise in December 2007.

Unlike Airbus’ beleaguered $25 billion-plus A380 program which has been hit by rising production costs, deferrals and delivery slippages; Boeing CEO Jim McNerney noted that the 747-8 program could become profitable should they successfully capture half of the 740 units that the airframer forecast the very large airplane market.

With an economic recovery being led by the Asia/Pacific region, Boeing is optimistic not only on the 747-8F’s fortunes, but also for the 747-8 Intercontinental – lessons learned on the 747-8F flight test program will be applied to the 747-8 Intercontinental.

“Some of the testing from the 747-8 Freighter will apply to the 747-8 Intercontinental. While there will be performance testing, the Intercontinental testing will have a heavy focus on the interior,” says Boeing.

“We’re optimistic regarding both the 747-8 Freighter and the Intercontinental. Interest is increasing. We are talking to more and more customers. We recently added an order in the VIP configuration last week. That marks our eighth VIP customer.”

Yet the threat remains in the form of aggressive A380 pricing. There are indeed possibilities for Boeing to explore, particularly with operators that suffer from a capacity gap that exists between the A380 and other smaller, but significantly more flexible aircraft in their fleets.

Critically, the larger revenue cargo volume of the 747-8I when compared to the A380 should bode well for carriers that place a bigger emphasis on freight, especially Asian-based carriers, from whom 33.3% of the worldwide freight tonnage kilometres (FTKs) originated even in the midst of the global financial crisis back in 2008.

The commonality between the 787 Dreamliner’s GEnx-1B engines and the 747-8I’s GEnx-2B engines could be a selling point to 787 Dreamliner customers whose fleets are large enough and are able to accommodate the 747- 8, too. To date, the GEnx-1B engine has roughly 40% of the announced 787 orders, slightly ahead of Rolls-Royce.

General Electric also noted that there is no weight-saving program for the GEnx-2B engines at present.

“In terms of weight savings packages on the GEnx-2B engine, there is nothing that is underway. The GEnx engine is already lighter than other comparable engines due to its composite fan case and fan blades as well as fewer airfoils in its turbine section, which has taken 400 lbs of weight off each engine. For the Boeing 747-8 aircraft with 4 engines, that means 1,600 lbs off the airframe.”

Boeing also acknowledged that the Trailing Edge Variable Camber (TEVC), one of the unique features on the 787 Dreamliner, does not feature on the 747-8 family.

“The 747-8 does not have TEVC. The 747-8 Program did study adding TEVC but found the performance benefit was not as great as on the 787. The 747-8 does not have active gust suppression control laws. The 747-8 has better response to wind gust due to its physical size. However, the 747-8 will have active control laws designed to improve the ride quality of the airplane.”

Despite the sluggish sales, uncertainty and volatility in the economy triggered by the global financial crises, the 747 program is progressing into a future that Boeing hopes is a lot brighter to replicate some of the sales successes witnessed on the larger A380 in recent years and look to translate that into the 747-8 Intercontinental.

- Daniel Tsang