By Bryan Corliss
Herald Writer
SEATTLE — The Sonic Cruiser is still a "rubber airplane," with a design that can be stretched or pulled in several directions, a potential customer for the jet said Tuesday.
Cathay Pacific is "extremely" interested in the Boeing Co.’s proposed new jet, said Peter Gardner, the Seattle-based vice president of the airline’s American division.
Gardner is the head of the Seattle branch of the Royal Aeronautical Society, which heard a presentation on the Sonic Cruiser from Boeing Commercial Airplanes Vice President John Roundhill on Tuesday.
The plane is intended to fly 15 to 20 percent faster than any current commercial jet. It will be designed and tested using more computer modeling than any other airplane in history, Roundhill told the group, which is made up largely of aerospace engineers.
Boeing engineers have been studying this design for 30 years, he said. But it is the technological convergence of the past few years — the development of powerful computers to design the plane; powerful, efficient engines to power it; and lightweight new materials to build it — that is making the Sonic Cruiser possible, Roundhill said.
Boeing officials have been meeting with potential Sonic Cruiser buyers to discuss the kinds of features they want to see in the proposed plane. It’s a process pioneered during development of the 777, when Boeing invited a number of airlines to help it design the plane.
But so far, Gardner said, Boeing hasn’t told each airline who else it is talking to. That won’t happen until after the first of the year.
Each airline is studying how it could best take advantage of the proposed jet’s speed, Gardner said. For Hong Kong-based Cathay, it could mean more frequent flights, or it could mean a change in departure or arrival times to make them more convenient for travelers.
For example, Cathay flights now arrive daily in London at 5 a.m. But with the Sonic Cruiser able to slice almost three hours off the travel time, it would be possible to schedule flights that would depart Hong Kong in the afternoon and arrive in London that same night.
That might be an advantage to business travelers, who could get a night’s sleep and thus arrive fresh at their meeting, Gardner said.
"We’ve really got to analyze our whole route structure," he said.
That’s something Boeing is studying too, Roundhill said.
The additional speed could mean that "airlines will be able to fly more airplane trips per day," he said, which might mean they could use two Sonic Cruisers on routes that now require three 757s, 767s or similarly-sized Airbus jets.
Cathay also is looking at how best to load and unload the plane, which unlike other airliners will have a delta-wing design. Saving time in the air is no good if passengers must spend more time on the ground, Gardner said.
Different airlines will have different needs and wants for a faster airplane, Gardner said. Cathay, for example, very much wants the jet to have a hold that will accommodate standard air cargo containers so it can readily move cargo from one plane to another.
Boeing knows that and "we’ll make every attempt to do that," Roundhill said. But the width of the plane also will depend on what other customers
"This is the problem we’re going to have, to get one-size-fits-all," Gardner said.
Boeing has not yet committed to building the plane. It is still working on design concepts, and is a long way from taking the first orders for it, Roundhill said.
But the plane will enter service between 2006 and 2008, Roundhill said.
"This is our focus," he said. "This is what’s captured our imagination. I think we can do this."
Gardner said he’s confident the Sonic Cruiser will fly one day. "I’ll bet you a few dollars that (it) will, and I’m not a betting man."
You can call Herald Writer Bryan Corliss at 425-339-3454
or send e-mail to corliss@heraldnet.com.
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