What is Digg?61 Comments
- hammerattack, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Perspective: Airbus spends billions to build the A380, a massive jet capable of carrying 800 people. Airlines aren't interested in 800 separate multimillion dollar lawsuits, which is why they've asked for updated versions of planes like the 737-300ER or the Fokker F100. Meanwhile back at airbus, they still can't explain why their composite parts inexplicably fail, nor can they explain the odd software glitches that cause planes to go into sensor-induced oscillations (aka bucking). Oh, and all of America was watching when another Jet Blue Airbus landed with the nose-gear stuck in the wrong position. Lastly, Airbus's A380 has severe aerodynamic issues, including the aforementioned wake turbulence, and an odd problem with its fuel consumption curves that may make it less efficient than originally advertised.
Boeing. Spent a few million. Stretched the legendary 747. Guess whose shareholders are happier? - Anth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"Won't this kind of be set off because of the fact that there will be less planes in the air?"
False. Recent ICAO reports show that the A380 wake verticies are much much worse than expected. The following time for landings and takeoffs has been increased to 10 minutes (the 747 now is like 6 minutes, the 737/A320 is 3 minutes), and the vorticies can descend up to 2,000 feet below the plane. Thats a big deal, these vorticies can crash a learjet or even toss around a 737 or A320.
There is a thread at airliners.net that talks about A380 wake vorticies. - awfulshot, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2the website is worth visiting for the music alone.
- poutine, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Heh, I love the "Tell a friend" tab on the website.
"Yeah Bill, I knew you were looking at picking up a new Airbus, but I really think you should check out this new Boeing. I think you'd like the ride better." - Nick_Circosta, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Probebly got a retail price of close to 450 Mill like the A380.... hehehe idea... set up a donation site.. crash my 747-8.com :)... come on only like half a billion ppl need to give me 1$ and i will fly it then crash it :)
- tsupersonic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Airbus makes a new airplane...and Boeing stretches a 40 year old design out a bit. Ummm."
Yeah, have you ever been on an Airbus? Imo, I think none of their currnet models can compare with Boeing 747. The 747 coach offers more legroom (tested in different airlines), they feel more comfortable. Airbus is to Honda, Boeing is to Mercedes. Boeing has the "luxury feel." - superal1394, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1First and foremost, if you look at the map of currently compatible airports for the 747 versus the A380, you can very obviously see which direction airliners will turn when they update their aging 747 fleet. Also, Boeings longer history makes it more attractive because they have more experience, while Boeings may have had a number of nasty crashes, they were usually neglegence on the airlines side. Also, Airbus has gotten bad press recently due to the many 'incidents' on their planes (buggy software, defective tailfins, mysteriously malfunctioning landing gear...).
All that said, airlines might pick up a few A380s for flights like New York to London in a vain attempt to get more people across per flight. Also, I am not sure if I am correct, but I believe the A380 can fly longer than the 747, but that may be only for the previous generation.
In my personal opinion, the A380 is ugly, and people will probably be freaked out by it when they are told that thing will be taking them across the Atlantic. But, when you look at the 747-8, the wing design is a bit radical, but it may not look quite that different when actually built.
Besides, who can resist that music on the 747 site? - harlanh001, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Nice plane,I look forward to flying on one. Check out the A380's website, it is really bad! http://events.airbus.com/A380/default1.aspx
- Skipatrol, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Airbus makes a new airplane...and Boeing stretches a 40 year old design out a bit. Ummm."
Kinda like Airbus is doing w/ the A350? They don't have a competitor to the 787 so they rehash one of their old designs to make something similar. Both companies put so much weight on their new designs (787 and A380) that they failed to realize that they will both sell. Now Airbus is trying to fill the same market as the 787. Boeing on the other hand was smart about it and didn't try to compete with the A380, they are marketing the 747-8 just below it in passenger volume and gross weight. This allows the 747 to fly into almost 4 times the number of airports as the A380 and the airlines won't need to spend a dime upgrading their facilities.
The new 747-8 employs an entirely new wing (new loft, new airfoil etc.) and updates the fuselage and main deck with new materials to make them lighter and stronger. So it is an entirely new airplane it just happens to share the same general shape with the current 747. - kidgenius, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Nick_Circosta
You guys don't have an A380 yet. They aren't out yet. They are currently testing them. The planes will not go through final certification until about this time next year. - bonlebon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1stick with the 747 before you fly on an airbus 380, airbus is well known for releasing planes with buggy software in it, indeed some people have been taken for a ride on those planes.
- Rain, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0>> the website is worth visiting for the music alone.
>> posted by awfulshot (0)
I like the music as well :) - Hollywood, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Good news, this is the first stretch for the 747. They have shrunk it in the past with the SP models, going against the trend with the other Boeing designed models that have grown in size over the years.
The A380 at present will not be used for the 800+ seats yet. Mainly for 2 reasons.
1) The airlines that have ordered them offer 1st and Business class seating.
2) The A380 hasn't passed been certified to carry 800+ POB yet.
Will it be successful...
Probably.. But only Boeing will know based on their projected targets.
Supposed fuel savings, will be attractive to airlines, especially with the high fuel prices atm.
Airlines with current 747 fleets will not have to start fresh with a new aircraft type like the A380.
For Boeing, not much is required to retool the 747 line, the R&D for the stretch wouldn't cost that much.
Limited airport changes may be required, but nothing like what is required to handle the A380. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Stupid Planes... Flying is for birds!
- NotTheTup, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Seating comfort depends on how an airline wants to install seats. Not on the airplane manufacturer....
I'm just glad that this came out in the end. They were trying to answer A380 for so many years. With the Sonic Cruiser and all. Finally something more concrete... - 9enisP, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Has anyone seen the movie "Flight Plan." I think this was the plane they used for the movie. I remember thinking, "Yeah right, like there's a plane that big a nice."
- zonk3r, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Hmm... I dunno, I love planes but I hate flying (ie, I love the tech but hate being in one in the air). The one plane I feel most comfortable in is the Boeing 747-400, the most flown plane in the world. It also has the best safety record per miles flown of any other plane in the world...
- AETAaAS, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Ah.... nice to see Boeings signature plane updated
- amatasu_zero, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Please. You compare the ride between a boeing and an airbus
You will know airbus has smoother rides overall than boeing. - bchang, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0That bed seat is probibly going to be like 100,000 dollars but its really cool
- matts0344, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Airbus makes a new airplane...and Boeing stretches a 40 year old design out a bit. Ummm."
Boeing also is developing a 787. - matts0344, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Cool, the A380 is nice, but imagine if there was a crash, or something, so many lives would be lost, it doesn't matter how many passengers airplanes carry, it's how the quality of the airplane is."
Won't this kind of be set off because of the fact that there will be less planes in the air? - nicodaemos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Cool music, a styled out concept plane .... all they needed were some booth babes and I woulda signed up for their mailing list to be informed when they became available.
Dug the music though, really. - thatsiebguy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The new cargo plane is sweet, I don't recall the original 747 cargos having the popup nose.
- the_snitch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I HAVE to know what that music is. its SOOO cool.
And the plane also. - deathBOB, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Very cool. That wing design is wild.
- bonlebon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0airbus is a younger company, statistic should be corrected to make some sense.
- Jammerdelray, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0wow....one state of the art jumbo jet....it's gonna blow airbus out of the market.
- Arizona_Glover, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Airbus makes a new airplane...and Boeing stretches a 40 year old design out a bit. Ummm.
- bonlebon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0also want to add that is not the plane that kills you is the maintnance, most of crashes occur to companies of doubful reputation.
- punica888, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0wao Boeing manges to throw back a bit, I can only laugh at it.
Its just catching up with airbus. Boeing are the Microsoft of the airplane industry and Airbus the Apple. When it comes to innovation.
Who says people don't want airplanes like the A380 they do!!
At least if you look at the statistics the A380 is the most preordered plane in history.
And on the Boeing website the A380 is less fuel efficient of course, well that is an estimate of Boeing who knows what kind of numbers they used.
Also notice that this airplane is coming out in the future, the A380 will be flying threw the skies with passengers this time next year.
And by the time the Boeing comes out Airbus will probably have a new engine upgrade from Rolls Royce which is even more efficient than the Boeing.
Also some body mentioned more Beings are being ordered that is not true.
For the first time in history I believe beginning this year or last year Airbus had more airplanes ordered than Boeing and the number keeps growing while the only thing that Boeing can survive with is military contracts from the U.S. government - GotWilk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0This is the new 747 the air force is going to implement the ICB missile defense system in. What ever happened to the 7E7?
- Markitect72, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The 7E7 was the original working name of the 787 Dreamliner, before they came up with that name. I can't wait for that one OR the new 747-8. I am such a Boeing fan! Long live Boeing.
- Deuterium, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"own hear in Aus we just got our first A380 Deliverd this week... but this plane is wonderfull :) Much nicer then the 787 dreamliner"
LOL... That's like comparing a Greyhound bus to a Mercedes. The company isn't called AirBUS for nothing. The interior of the 380 looks like the same crap Boeing and Airbus have been delivering for the past 30 years. The 787, at least, gives us some fresh ideas.
That said the majority of people don't buy tickets because of what plane is flying the route, they buy based on ticket price first, time second, airline third. - bwjacket, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Those pictures remind me why I hate window seats on airplanes. If I looked out and saw the wing flexing that much I'd lose my lunch.
- search, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The music on the site is GREAT!!! I danced, I cried, I sang, I lived through the music... it was as if I was on the plane! (first class of course)
Yeah baby.
oh and the plane looks cool. what's up with the wing bending like that? LOL - duketogo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Why can't you wait to fly on it?
- xpgeek, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0That new wing design is a thing of beauty.
- alevel27mage, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I've been listening to the music for about 10 minutes.
Oh, the aeroplane is cool too. - ednopantz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0punica888 is right in that like Apple, Airbus evidently has plenty of fanboys.
The existing infrastructure thing is huge. No wonder Boeing have been quietly thrilled about the A380; it is a colossal blunder on their competitor's part. - Anth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Oh yea, might help to mention that the increased follow time basically negates the idea that bigger planes = less traffic. What good is 1 plane with 550 people if you cant have another plane takeoff behind it for 10 minutes? In 20 minutes, you can have 3 747s take off carrying about 1250 people vs two A380s take off carrying 1100 people?
- pacmansyu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0kick ass
- bigpresh, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0heh, and 747 diggs :-)
- nomore, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The music sucks.
- Markitect72, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Airbus makes a new airplane...and Boeing stretches a 40 year old design out a bit. Ummm."
Boeing is sooo smart for redesigning the 747. The author of the quote above is an idiot. Boeing will save millions on research and development by combining technologies from the new 787 Dreamliner which they have already designed, the 777 which is already in flight, and the existing 747 body design. Airlines are happy with the 747, airports are capable of receiving it, pilots already know how to fly it, and by stretching it, it will fill the 450-seat niche which is currently vacant. Way to go Boeing! - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Kudos to Boeing for listening to their customers about what is important instead of the press. There aren't any duty free shops, no walk up bar, no waterfall, just revenue earning seats and (big revenue earning bunks), yet doing it with better comfort and efficiency using EXISTING AIRPORT INFRASTRUCTURE.
Unlike the A380. Sure the A380 is cool looking but is it practical? This was build for Middle Eastern and Asian airlines. Frieghter versions aren't exactly flying off the line either. It's too big for most. Efficiency isn't just about how much fuel it uses, it's about revenue per passenger seat mile or kilogram of cargo. - b0b0, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0As a frequent flyer, I can say that Airbus sucks. They generally tend to be built on the cheap, and I often wonder whether they will collapse before takeoff.
While Boeing planes are generally uncomfortable, especially the 747 (engines are very loud), they are generally better than Airbuses. Really, it is about the better of two terrible things. - lostknight, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Sorry punica888, you are wrong. Boeing actually has a 200 plane order lead this year (roughly 600 to 400) due to the sucess of the 777, 787 and 737NG.
In addition, Boeing never got the millitary aircraft contract. It's being rebid due to corruption.
The A380 is much much larger then it needs to be, esp given that the market for Jumbo airplanes has statistically declined since it's introduction in the 60s and 70s. - Nick_Circosta, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@ kidgenius
My mistake.. we got our first LOOK at a A380 with our QANTAS Decals :( Sorry -
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