Seven-eight-seven. That’s more like it.
The new designation for the Boeing Co.’s state-of-the-art jetliner seems to roll off the tongue more naturally than 7E7, even if local backers could claim that the “E” stood for Everett, where the new plane will be assembled starting next year.
And with last week’s announcement that six Chinese airlines have ordered 60 787 Dreamliners, bringing total announced orders to 186, it appears Boeing’s big bet on its energy-efficient model was a smart one. Boeing is banking on a continuing shift away from the traditional hub-and-spoke system of air travel, in which routes feed into large airports where customers must change planes to get to their final destination. The new vision, used with considerable success by low-fare U.S. carriers, envisions more direct flights between smaller airports.
The Chinese order is notable not only for its size, but because Boeing and its rival, Airbus, compete vigorously there. China’s order for 60 787s contrasts sharply with last week’s finalization of an order for just five Airbus A380 superjumbos, the symbol of Airbus’ bet that the old hub system and its reliance on greater seating capacity is here to stay.
If other major orders follow in the next several months – particularly from bellwether Singapore Airlines – buyers currently on the fence figure to jump toward the 787. This despite the fact that Airbus has tried to hedge its bet on the double-decker A380 by retrofitting one of its older, smaller models in an effort to compete with the Dreamliner. That Band-Aid approach will be hard-pressed to succeed against the cutting-edge engineering that has gone into the 787, which will be 20 percent more energy efficient than current models and will cost significantly less to maintain.
As more airlines agree that Boeing is on the right course, and as the U.S. airline industry recovers from its prolonged slump, the local hope is that more 787 subcontracting work will be drawn here. The Snohomish County Economic Development Council is working on that, and should aggressively engage the City of Everett, Snohomish County and other interested partners in that process.
With a new name and growing interest, Boeing’s next-generation investment is starting to pay off. Time will tell whether the significant public investment it took to get the 787 built here will pay off, too.
So far, so good.
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