Originally Posted by
forgot to bid
Interesting rumor.
I could see this happening if Delta has serious questions about Boeing and the 797's direction and Airbus is offering the sun and the moon to win ma' Delta.
Delta is the largest operator of Airbus aircraft in the world...
When it comes to Airbus, Delta has the pull that SW enjoys at Boeing.
Don'cha think it's a little funny the RFP came out a week after Airbus announced the 320NEO?
The 320NEO will help replace some of the Reagan-eara 320s in our fleet.
(yes, we have 320s that are older than our MD88s...)
It's pretty certain Delta will order the A321 with sharklets and the upgraded MTOW to replace the oldest domestic 757s. With the current engines the A321 with sharklets has a 17%/seat fuel burn advantage over the 757-200, an 8%/seat fuel burn advantage over the 737-900ER.
Fuel Savings...no sun and moon required
...the sharklet-outfitted A321 will be able to operate between Boston and San Francisco or San Francisco and Maui, Hawaii, with maximum passengers - similar to routes flown by the US 757 operators - but with a 17% per seat fuel burn advantage, based on a 185-seat A321 and 192-seat 757-200.
...the transatlantic routes flown by some US 757 operators are beyond the capability of the A321, and says that the primary focus centres on US transcontinental routes.
Airbus points sharklet A321 at 757 replacement market
The 797 is a nonstarter, Boeing got nothing for the next 10 years in the narrowbody space...Even Gary Kelly is hinting that they might go Airbus.
Outsourcing has turned a great company into a bungled mess and it will take a while to get the ship righted, even though Boeing keeps pretending all is peachy.
Cheers
George