Does Boeing have a leg up Down Under?

Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, October 19, 2005

OK so you all know that Boeing’s pitching 787s to Qantas, and that Airbus is countering with A350s.

But Boeing’s big gun in this fight may be the 777-200LR. The Australian http://finance.news.com.au/story/0,10166,16950165-462,00.html reports that Qantas may put an all-business-class configuration into a 777-200LR, which would allow it to fly Sydney-to-London non-stop both ways. (The Worldliner has the range to fly 300 passengers London-to-Sydney, but couldn’t make it back because of headwinds.)

Key Quote: “It is understood the flying kangaroo is looking at the 777-200LR, which would have far fewer passengers in an all-business configuration, with a lighter interior and possibly additional fuel capacity to allow it to cope with headwinds on the marathon Sydney-London leg.”

In the meantime, the Australian Associated Press says http://afr.com/articles/2005/10/20/1129775894066.html Qantas will decide whether to buy Boeing or Airbus at its Dec. 7 board meeting.

Key Quote: “In August, Qantas said it was considering a number of options including Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 aircraft for use on medium-haul international, trans-Tasman and Australian domestic routes. It was also mulling ‘ultra-long range’ variants of the Boeing 777 and Airbus A340 to operate on hub-busting routes.”

The AAP says Qantas will spend up to $20 billion Australian on the order — or about 15 billion U.S. dollars.