Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON
British Airways could be poised to boost the Boeing 717's flagging sales fortunes, with the twinjet emerging as front runner for a requirement to purchase up to 40 of the 100-seaters.
A request for proposals (RFP), covering 20 firm orders, plus up to 20 options, has been issued to Airbus Industrie, Boeing and British Aerospace, calling for the firmly ordered aircraft to be delivered over 12 months from the middle of next year. The airline seeks flexible financing terms for the aircraft, with a short "walk-away" clause of as little as three months. BA also wants the winning bidder to take a large proportion of its 53 Boeing 757s in trade.
The 100-seaters are being sought for BA's UK divisions - Manchester/Birmingham-based BA Regional and possibly EuroGatwick - which are about to receive the first of up to 59 Airbus A319/A320s. These divisions operate 737-200s, 300s and -400s (112-140 seats), but the introduction of the larger Airbuses was expected to eliminate gradually 100-seaters from BA's own fleet, with that size category being limited to the airline's franchise partners/divisions.
Industry observers suggest the emergence of an immediate requirement for a 100-seater represents yet another U-turn on BA's fleet strategy, as it fights to keep control of its capacity growth and focus on high yield passengers.
With a large fleet of A320 family aircraft on order (188 orders and options), the 107-seat A318 derivative would seem the most sensible candidate, but the new model is not available until 2002. The consortium would struggle to find 20 additional A319/A320 production slots for BA next year, while BAe is unlikely to want to get involved in a complex Avro RJ/757 trade-in deal, suggesting the 717 is favourite.
The RFP is believed to be linked to BA's negotiations with Boeing for the sale of 757s for onward lease to DHL as freighters. The proposed sale to Boeing of older 757s is believed to have been stalled by a difference of opinion about their value. Industry sources suggest the 717 requirement may have been engineered to push the 757 deal through.
Source: Flight International
