By Max Kingsley-Jones in London & Guy Norris in Farnborough
Boeing is considering adopting a longer stretch for the Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental passenger model to increase capacity to around 470 passengers when it firms up the specification next year.
When the General Electric GEnx-powered 747-8 programme was launched in November last year, the 747-8I featured a 3.6m (11.8ft) stretch over the 747-400, increasing three-class seating by 34 passengers to 450. However, the lead variant on the programme is the 747-8 Freighter, which has a 5.6m stretch, and this extension could be adopted for the passenger model, says Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice-president marketing Randy Baseler.
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| The 747-8I could be set to grow following requests for Boeing to consider using the freighter's 5.6m stretch |
"We originally believed that the 20% size increase [over the 747-400] for the passenger model was what the market wanted, but some airlines have asked us to look into adopting the 5.6m fuselage stretch from the freighter, and weren't worried about losing a little range," he says.
"Three-class seating would increase to 467 passengers, but range will fall by around 200-300nm [370-560km] to around 8,000nm," he adds.
Boeing 747-8 product development chief engineer Roy Eggink confirms "we're working with customers" to define the exact length of the forward fuselage stretch, but adds that the final outcome rests on discussions over range/payload requirements and the potential uses of the "Skyloft" upper crown space. Although Eggink says various plug inserts are being studied, a "5.6m stretch, in terms of body length, is what we'd be looking at."
The studies, which will include forthcoming windtunnel tests at Qinetiq's 5m pressurised low-speed site at Farnborough in the UK, are also aimed at balancing capacity increases while maintaining range around the "sweet spot" of 15,000km. "We're starting to get a pretty good feel for where we're heading," says Eggink, who adds that the final stretch length will be decided by first quarter of 2007.
Baseler plays down Boeing's latest advertising campaign, which describes the 747-8I as having "500-seat capacity". He says that "the aircraft we're offering today is the 450-seater", and that even the capacity of the 5.6m stretch version would be well below 500 seats. "Whoever stands up first and says 'we'll buy the aircraft' will decide the size when we firm up the programme."
The 747-8F is scheduled to enter service with Cargolux in September 2009 with the 747-8I due to follow about six months after later, in the second quarter of 2010.
Source: Flight International
