Cracks in Ryanair’s lowest cost model

By Bjorn Fehrm September 27, 2016, ©. Leeham Co: Ryanair has canceled 2,000 flight over the last few weeks. The background is a lack of pilots, after a change of holiday accounting period. The cancellations come against a backdrop… Read More

Embraer faces new challenge from MRJ90

Part 2 Sept. 10, 2015, © Leeham Co. Embraer is the dominant producer of commercial aircraft in the 70-125 seat sector, having overtaken Bombardier in the last decade following the development and 2004 introduction of the E-Jet. Bombardier’s CRJ… Read More

Odds and Ends: MAX EIS dates; McNerney on business climate; A320 Tianjin plant only breaks even

MAX EIS dates: Aviation Week has this story that lists the planned MAX EIS dates: 737-8, 2017 (we previously reported 4Q2017); 737-9 in 2018 and 737-7 in 2019. AvWeek also reported the bypass ratio for the LEAP-1B is… Read More

What should Boeing do for 737 class?

FAA 737 inspection AD covers 175 jets

Note: Dominic Gates of The Seattle Times has a particularly thorough piece looking at this incident. The Wall Street Journal also has a good story on the topic. The New York Times has this story. Update, April 5:… Read More

A320neo EIS 2016-17

Airbus has confirmed to us the planned EIS of the A320neo family. The company initially announced only that the A320neo would enter service in the Spring of 2016. A spokesman confirmed our estimates of the family’s EIS: A320… Read More

Five reasons for Airbus to proceed with the A320 NEO

Richard Aboulafia, aerospace consultant with The Teal Group, published his monthly two-page newsletter in which he gives five reasons why Airbus should proceed with the A320 New Engine Option (NEO). The newsletter may be downloaded here. We disagree… Read More

737RE? Forgettaboutit

In what is, perhaps, the clearest signal Boeing isn’t going to re-engine the 737, and that it will take on the Airbus A320NEO head-on with an upgraded model, take a look at the last line of the AerCap… Read More

Boeing skeptical of CSeries, C919, MS-21 EIS

We wrote the following article for Commercial Aviation Online, which appeared yesterday. In case anyone wonders, there is no relation between John Hamilton and us. ********* The chief engineer of the 737 program is skeptical of the emerging… Read More

Flight tests pending for enhanced 737

Flight tests are about to begin on a Boeing 737 ultimately destined for Continental Airlines that incorporate aerodynamic improvements designed to reduce fuel consumption by 1%. Boeing has done some “cleaning up” of the aerodynamics by streamlining the… Read More