Welcome to our second news-based video covering Airbus, Boeing, and other planemakers.
As always, if you want to check out other videos covering recent aviation news,
you’ll find them in our playlist titled “News summaries”. But with that out of the way,
let’s look at manufacturer news that has taken place in the last few weeks!
Well, although we aim to make this a monthly-update, a lot has happened since
our last video on aircraft manufacturers. The main reason for this is the 2021 Dubai Airshow,
which took place in the middle of November. A typical venue for big-order announcements,
let’s first run through this major event and how the big two planemakers performed.
Airbus stole the show in terms of the number of aircraft deals, clocking orders for over 400
jets at the first major aviation event since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. It was looking as
though there would be no significant orders on the first day of the show but with an hour of
activities remaining, Indigo Partners revealed an order for 255 jets. This will see A321neos
and A321XLRs go to the company’s airlines- Wizz Air, Frontier, Volaris, and JetSMART.
On the second day, leasing company ALC signed an
order for 111 aircraft, which included seven A350 freighters.
This made the firm the first official customer of Airbus’ newest purpose-built freighter.
The last commercial aircraft orders were placed on the show’s third day, with Jazeera Airways
committing to 28 A321neos, while Nigeria’s Ibom Air firmed up an order for ten A220s.
While Airbus stole the show with orders, Boeing’s 777X got plenty of attention as
it made its first public appearance. While it was undoubtedly the center of attention,
Boeing didn’t manage to book any new orders for its newest aircraft.
At the show, Boeing’s orders had more of a cargo focus.
On the show’s first day, Icelease placed an order for 11 converted 737-800 freighters.
This was followed by DHL Express ordering nine 767-300 converted freighters the next day.
The second day also saw Emirates order two new Boeing 777 freighters,
though airline President Tim Clark later revealed that he would’ve liked more jets, saying:
“We’re trying to get hold of more, Boeing can’t actually give us them.”
The American manufacturer then booked a few more orders on the third day of the show, with Sky One
FZE purchasing three 777-300s in the morning. Air Tanzania then announced it would be ordering a 787
Dreamliner, a 767 freighter, and two Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. Finally, the manufacturer scored big
on the show’s last day, with Indian startup Akasa Air ordering a whopping 72, 737 MAX aircraft.
Adding up all the orders mentioned put Airbus in the lead with 404 commercial aircraft
orders while Boeing was further behind, with orders for 101 planes.
Days after the conclusion of the Airshow, Airbus obtained its second order for the A350 Freighter
via the CMA CGM Group- a company focused on shipping and logistics. The cargo-focused firm
signed a binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
to purchase four of the next-generation twinjet freighters.
In the last bit of Airbus-related news, recent reporting by Reuters
suggests that the surface degradation issues with the A350 experienced by Qatar
Airways may go further than previously thought. While some had speculated that
the degradation of the paint surface had been a consequence of the severe desert heat in Doha,
investigations revealed that it is much more widespread and likely unrelated to heat.
Perusing a private maintenance message board used by Airbus and A350 operators, Reuters has
discovered at least five other airlines reporting deterioration of the painted surface on the A350.
The publication identified Finnair, Cathay Pacific, Etihad, Lufthansa and Air France
(on behalf of Air Caraibes) as all raising concerns about the issue.
According to the investigation, Finnair, Cathay and Lufthansa have all cited some quote-unquote
‘cosmetic damage’ on their A350s. In messages on the board, Finnair – who was Europe’s first A350
operator – reported paint damage just a year after taking its first A350. Cathay Pacific
reported similar problems just weeks later, and in one post said the issue had been found on an
A350 just two weeks after taking delivery. The precise issue with the paintwork on the
A350s has been closely guarded, but more details are beginning to emerge. Airbus
describes the problem as quote-unquote ‘early surface wear’, which in some cases has led to
the lightning mesh under the surface becoming exposed. It’s not exactly an unsafe condition,
with the affected airlines agreeing that it is a cosmetic problem rather than a safety concern.
However, a source told Reuters that for Qatar Airways and at least one other airline,
the wear had become so great that the mesh itself had begun to develop gaps. This would leave the
carbon composite fuselage exposed to the elements, and could eventually lead to more serious damage.
Elaborating on more Boeing news, it seems as though the planemaker is aware that airlines do
indeed want the 777X freighter - perhaps even more than the shorter 777X passenger variant,
the 777-8. At a roundtable briefing ahead of the Dubai Airshow, Boeing’s Vice President, Commercial
Sales & Marketing, Ihssane Mounir, commented, “[The 777-8] is an airplane that is part of the
family. We’ve always looked at it as the second or third in the family in terms of when it comes
to market. Second to the 777-9, potentially third if we do the freighter, we don’t know.”
Boeing has shifted much of its attention and focus to the cargo and freight market.
Indeed, elaborating on the announcements made at the Dubai Airshow, the planemaker is set to open
a new freighter conversion line at its existing London Gatwick Airport facility. Opening next
year, the new line will see the total number of employees at the facility rise to 130. The US
planemaker will also open two further conversion lines in Kelowna, Canada, a year later, in 2023.
Then, as we mentioned in a Main Channel simple flying video, leaders of the US House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee have requested a government review into the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) oversight of the production of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.
Representatives stated the following in a letter to US Inspector General Soskin:
“We are writing to request that the Department of Transportation’s
Office of Inspector General conduct a review of the FAA’s oversight of the manufacture
and production of the Boeing 787. We request that your office… evaluate whether the FAA’s
existing inspection program is sufficient to identify production issues involving the 787.”
The Inspector General will be asked to determine whether the FAA has enough inspectors, whether
it performs enough inspections, and whether it has appropriate processes in place to identify
production issues. At the time of making this video, Boeing 787 deliveries remain suspended.
Stealing a lot less of the spotlight at the Dubai Airshow,
3 Embraer E175s were ordered on a firm basis by Nigerian operator
Overland Airways. An additional three of the same are reserved as options.
A deal worth $299.4 million at list prices- if options are exercised,
these aircraft will be delivered with a premium class cabin configuration and 88-seats from 2023.
The E175 is Embraer’s smallest of the E-jet family, and the only one not to have been reworked
into the new technology E2 configuration. The jet has proven itself popular during the pandemic,
offering incredible efficiency and the right level of capacity for the depressed market size.
The other piece of Embraer news had to do with Canadian carrier Porter Airlines as it announced
the finalization of a sale and leaseback of up to 19 E195-E2 jets. The North American E2 launch
customer, Porter is looking to take delivery of these new units between 2022 and 2023.
And finally, while no big news has come from China and COMAC in recent weeks,
we did hear from an executive at Rostec about the ongoing delays to Russia’s MC-21 program. The
program was stunted due to sanctions imposed by the US on supply of parts and materials to Russia.
Victor Kladov, Head of International Cooperation & Regional Policy at Rostec, told Simple Flying that
the firm had planned to go into serial production of the MC-21 in 2019. However, America placed
sanctions on a small company that supplied composite thread to the manufacturer, saying:
“The thread is used to make the composite wing. So, it was a very unfair blow at the last moment,
because we were dependent on this composite material. This
delayed the whole program by almost two years.” Prior to sanctions, Irkut was importing all the
resin it needed for manufacturing. However, with no imports available, Russia was forced to invest
in its own composite manufacturing capabilities. Kladov notes that investments were made into
Russian R&D and a plant has been set up to produce 100% Russian-made composite material. Indeed,
Russia was also able to produce its own engine in the form of the PD-14.
“ It taught us a lesson” Kladov notes..” A lesson that you can not be entirely 100%
dependent, because you never know what happens next, in this turbulent world.”
Well, as usual, we weren’t able to cover everything in this video,
or go into as much detail as we would have liked. But as with
all of our videos, there’s a more detailed corresponding article on SimpleFlying.com.
Check out the links in the description to learn more- and, as always,
share your thoughts on this video and any of the stories covered, by leaving a comment!