In recent times Boeing has very decisively shelved all plans for the 797,
or New Midsize Airplane (NMA). With the MAX and 777X issues to deal with, it just wasn’t the
time or the place. But could another previously shelved design end up being a ready-made NMA?
Perhaps the 787-3 could be reinvented as the middle market solution that the industry needs…
The ‘New Midsize Airplane’ dubbed by some the Boeing 797, is a project that is pretty much dead
in the water right now. Boeing has too much on its plate readying the MAX for return to service.
Getting the 777X out the door is another priority for the company.
Originally conceived to be a small twin-aisle aircraft, the 797 was set to plug the gap between
the smallest Dreamliner and the largest MAX. It’s a gap that hasn’t been adequately filled
since the twin 757/767 combo was developed. Now, with technologies moving on at pace,
Boeing is hoping to fill this niche with something new and exciting.
Following one of the worst years in company history and a change of CEO, the idea was thrown
out. Incoming boss David Calhoun believed a fresh look at the project was required.
With the niche set to be almost filled by the twin offerings of the A321XLR
and the A330-800 from its European competitor,
time is of the essence. A clean sheet design takes a long time to develop and would likely see the
767/757 replacements go to Airbus before Boeing can respond with its own offering.
But what if it wasn’t a clean sheet design? What if Boeing could fill the gap with a
derivative of something it already has? If you’ve never heard of the 787-3,
we’ll forgive you. It was a pretty niche aircraft designed for a very specific market. The 787-3
was conceived as a bespoke aircraft for a high capacity but short range service.
During the evolution of the 747, this need was similarly met with the 747-100BSR
S.U.D. developed for Japan Air Lines. The stretched upper deck added more seats,
with a loss in range that didn’t matter to the Japanese carrier. Other short-range variants like
the 747SR were launched too, with ANA and Jal flying 20 between them until as late as 2006.
For this market, Boeing had floated the idea of the 787-3. This short-range Dreamliner would
accommodate as many as 330 passengers with a range of 2,500 – 3,050 nautical miles. Initially, Boeing
had sold 43 of the type to its target customers, ANA and Jal, but the plane never came to be.
In 2008, delays to the 787 program forced Boeing to consolidate its resources. In order
to get the more widely-appealing 787-8 launched, resources were pulled from the 787-3 program. The
delays caused both ANA and Jal to switch to the 787-8 instead and sealed the fate of the 787-3.
But the idea still has legs and perhaps a lower capacity,
high-efficiency Dreamliner could be just the ticket:
Take some weight out, give it the latest engines and you’ve pretty much got your 797 right there.
And the idea isn’t just coming from us. It has some high-level support too.
Speaking to Airline Ratings, CEO of Qatar Airways,
Akbar Al Baker, believed that the NMA should be based on this plane. Specifically
saying: “[A] 787-3 with a new lighter wing and derated engines would be an excellent platform.”
For the time being, Boeing has bigger priorities. But once the current issues are ironed out,
its likely attention will once again turn to the next new commercial jet. A modified,
reinvented 787-3 could be just the plane Boeing needs to get back on its feet.
What do you think? Is the 787-3 platform a good NMA launch point? Let us know in the comments.