Last year, the Boeing 787 family marked 10 years since entering commercial service.
The story all began with Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) in October 2011.
In the decade or so that has followed, the Dreamliner has become a popular widebody aircraft
with operators worldwide, to the extent that many customers have made repeat orders for
it.
What’s behind this encouraging move?
As it stands, Boeing has received just under 1,500 net orders for the 787 family as a whole.
Interestingly, this figure has been higher in recent years, peaking at 1,505 net orders
in 2020.
However, issues surrounding the certification of the jet caused this to fall by 11 in 2021,
and another six have been lost this year.
Nonetheless, the current tally represents a strong showing for what is still a relatively
young design.
For context, it is just 100 aircraft shy of the 747 and its total orders - which was in
production for over 50 years.
Of the 1,488 net orders for the 787 family, 1,006 have been delivered at the time of this
video’s production, a proportion of around 68%.
With regards to how these deliveries are split, the most popular model thus far has been the
mid-sized 787-9 at 56.5%.
The -8 accounts for nearly 35% while the newer -10 sits at around 6%.
One of the reasons why the 787 has generated such high sales in a relatively short period
is the fact that many of its customers have come back to order more examples of the airliner.
This helps the growth of both Boeing's order book, and the rapport between the manufacturer
and its customers.
Speaking in late June, Boeing's VP of Commercial Marketing, Darren Hulst, stated:
"The 787, as we track it, has received over 700 repeat orders.
About half of the order total for the 787 program has been from airlines and companies
ordering the aircraft again, a second, third, fourth, or even a fifth time, in some cases."
For the proportion of airlines and lessors that have made repeat 787 orders, 47 customers
have returned after their first order.
Hulst says that number would be in the mid-80s, depending on if you count private versus commercial
customers.
“That means over half of our airline customers have already ordered the aircraft again,"
he says.
These figures show how keen 787 customers are to come back to the aircraft.
When American Airlines became a repeat customer for the type, Kevin McAllister (Boeing's CEO
at the time) cited its quote "unique passenger appeal and unmatched ability to help airlines
open new routes and grow profitably" as a key factor in this desire.
Boeing says that, with the present figures, the 787 has become the industry's most repeat-ordered
widebody aircraft family.
As a point of comparison, the Airbus A350 has racked up 204 repeat orders from 10 repeat
customers, with the A330neo accruing 33 from 6.
However, it’s worth noting that both of these are younger designs than the 787, so
it will be interesting to see if the gap closes in years to come.
What do you make of the Boeing 787's repeat order success?
Which variants of the Dreamliner have you flown on?
Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments!