Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, May 20, 1995 TAG: 9505220014
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: STANLEY ZIEMBA CHICAGO TRIBUNE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The ceremonial transfer in Seattle this week of the $100 million-plus, high-technology airplane from manufacturer to buyer was carried out with great fanfare, and for good reason: Boeing and United have a lot riding on the new craft.
For United, the huge twin-engine jet, second only in size to Boeing's 747-400 jetliner, is a potentially important weapon in its battle against other U.S. megacarriers and major European airlines for supremacy on trans-Atlantic routes.
``With the 777, United is going to be able to offer our customers more long-range, nonstop service to more cities than any other airline, ever before,'' Greenwald said.
For Boeing, which invested $5 billion in development of the airplane, it is an opportunity to surpass its competitors - Airbus Industrie and McDonnell Douglas - in the race to replace the world's aging fleets of long-range DC-10 and Lockheed L-1011 aircraft.
``This airplane is designed to be the preferred airplane in its class, offering features, innovations and approaches to aircraft development that will set the standard well into the next century,'' said Dale Hougardy, vice president and general manager of Boeing's commercial airplane group 777 division.
The company has orders from more than a dozen airlines for more than 140 B-777s, which carry about 300 passengers depending on seat configuration. And more orders should be coming in once the airline industry, which has just begun to emerge from nearly five consecutive years of steep financial losses, returns to profitability, analysts say. United has ordered 34 of the 777s at a price of $122 million to $167 million each. It also has purchased options on an additional 34 of the 777s.
United will offer its first passenger flight on the 777 between London's Heathrow Airport and Washington's Dulles International Airport on June 7. By the end of this year, it expects to have 10 of the airliners in service.
The reason the aircraft is commanding such attention, industry insiders point out, is because no other airplane has been created with such close attention to passenger comfort as well as the industry's desire for a cost-efficient and easily maintainable aircraft.
Among the passenger amenities available on the new jetliner are wider seats and more space between seats than on any other plane in the 777's class. And the overhead compartments are larger than those on most airplanes.
by CNB