Leeham News and Analysis
There's more to real news than a news release.
Bjorn’s Corner: A good in-service start for CSeries
August 26, 2016, ©. Leeham Co: Bombardier’s CSeries appears to have a good start in airline operations following its show-and-tell at the Farnborough Air Show in July. The first CS100 entered service with launch customer SWISS International Airlines shortly after the international event wrapped up. The aircraft has now been in service a month.
At the show I was on my way to a meeting with Rob Dewar, CSeries VP and Program manager to discuss the expected in service reliability of the CSeries, starting service with SWISS at the end of the week. I was a bit early and decided to use the time to pass the CS100 exhibition aircraft, the first series CS100 for SWISS. It was flown there by a SWISS crew earlier in the week.
Figure 1. C Series first serial aircraft flying in regular service for SWISS. Source: Bombardier.
The SWISS pilots were preparing for the trip home to Zurich as I entered the cockpit. We had time to talk about the aircraft and their expectations for the first revenue flight in two days, on Friday, the 15thof July. Read more
Russian-Chinese wide-body: The market
By Bjorn Fehrm
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Introduction
August 25, 2016, ©. Leeham Co: Having dissected the players behind the Russian-Chinese wide-body, it’s time to look at what market such an aircraft aims to capture.
Figure 1. Concept for new wide-body airliner. Source: United Aircraft.
The project participants, Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) and Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), say they intend to make a 250-280 seat aircraft with a 6,500nm range.
We will look at what market such an aircraft can address from its Entry into Service (EIS) 2025 and over the next 10 years. We will also discuss the constrains that emerges with UAC and COMAC entering the market as new players.
Summary:
- The Russian-Chinese wide-body covers a market segment called “small wide-body” in the Global market forecast made by Airbus and Boeing.
- Based on data in these forecasts, the dominant market during the first 10 years after a 2025 Entry into Service (EIS) would be a captive Chinese market.
Trump or Clinton will be OK for defense industry: Analyst
Aug. 24, 2016: It’s a light week for relevant commentary from the US aerospace analysts.
- Buckingham Research takes a view on the election of either Trump or Clinton on the defense industry.
- India’s Jet Airways will defer 10 Boeing 787s (Wells Fargo).
- Aeroflot will transfer its 22 787s to another company (Wells Fargo.)
AvWeek obtains Boeing sales targets
Aug. 22, 2016, © Leeham Co.: It’s the kind of leak that drives a company crazy. Aviation Week obtained an internal Boeing sales target list that is well below a book:bill of 1:1 this year. The math shows that Boeing would have a book:bill of just 0.72:1.
Even this may be optimistic.
The sales target data, obtained by Guy Norris, indicates Boeing had a target of 88 777 sales and 88 787 sales this year.
The list does not distinguish between 777 Classics and 777Xs. So far this year, Boeing booked just eight 777 Classic orders.
It’s booked 19 787 orders.
The target list show 14 orders for the 747-8. Four already have been booked.
The order figures above are through August 16. This sales target list is a few months old and may have changed since then.
Boeing’s guidance has been 1:1.
Russian-Chinese wide-body: background and outlook
By Bjorn Fehrm
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Introduction
August 21, 2016, ©. Leeham Co: The discussions around a joint Russian and Chinese development of a 250-300 seat wide-body has been going on for years.
The project got a more concrete form at President Putin’s visit to China in June. On the 25th of June visit, an inter-governmental agreement to develop and market the aircraft was signed.
Figure 1. Concept for new wide-body airliner. Source: United Aircraft.
At the same time Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) and Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) agreed to establish a joint venture for the program.
What market is this aircraft trying to address and will it become a serious player in the wide-body market? Will it give the duopoly Airbus/Boeing something to worry about?
We will address these questions in a series of articles. Before going into the questions around the wide-body program, we will look at the players, UAC and COMAC. Are they up to the job of making a competitive wide-body aircraft?
Summary:
- Russia and China enter the wide-body project with widely different knowledge bases.
- China’s first airliner project, ARJ21, just received local certification after years of delays.
- Russia has produced over 10,000 airliners and has made two generations of wide-body aircraft in the size category.
- The latest wide-body aircraft, Ilyushin IL-96, is on the level of Airbus A340-300 from a technological basis.
Bjorn’s Corner: LED runway lighting causes problems
By Bjorn Fehrm
August 19, 2016, ©. Leeham Co: I described in my Corner from 5th of August how a forward looking IR camera could add Enhanced Vision capabilities to a pilot’s tools for safe landings. The camera can pick up the infrared heat radiation from temperature differences in the nature down to a tenth of a degree. It can therefore see things that the naked eye can’t see.
Figure 1 is from a trail that FedEx did before equipping several of its freighters with Enhanced Vision Systems. The Infrared camera (right) can clearly see all heat-emitting objects around the runway, including the fields; the naked eye looking through the cockpit window (left) can’t see anything.
Figure 1. Naked eye (left) versus IR camera (right) when landing on a foggy day. Source: FedEx presentation.
This all works fine as long as the landing and runway lights emit heat, i.e., are standard incandescent types. But these are now replaced more and more with LED lights where there is no heat and therefore no appearance on the Enhanced Vision!
Will Enhanced Vision crumble before it took off? Luckily there is a solution. Read more
Boeing receives first contracts for KC-46A production
Aug. 18, 2016: Boeing received the first two contracts for production of the KC-46A aerial refueling tanker, the company announced.
From the press release:
ExIm remains blocked by one US Senator
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Introduction
Aug. 18, 2016, © Leeham Co. The US Congress reauthorized the ExIm Bank after a long effort to kill the institution. But the Bank remains out of business for transactions for more than $10m. This means Boeing can’t use the Bank for export financing for purchasers of its 7-Series airplanes.
Why?
Because the Bank doesn’t have a quorum for its Board of Directors.
Why?
Because one US Senator is blocking appointments that would put the Bank back in business.
Who is this Senator?
US Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) is the lone senator blocking the US ExIm Bank from approving credit support for more than $10m. Boeing was a large beneficiary of ExIm support. Shelby is a supporter of the Airbus A320 plant in Mobile (AL). Photo via Google images.
Richard Shelby of Alabama. Shelby once supported ExIm Bank. Now he doesn’t.
According to news reports, Shelby became a convert to the extreme right’s view that ExIm is a form of corporate welfare and Boeing is its primary recipient. Boeing doesn’t need this support, Bank opponents say.
LNC believes there might be another reason.
Alabama is where Boeing rival Airbus opened an A320 assembly plant last year.
Summary
- Airbus had an advantage over Boeing with ExIm Bank shut down—until Airbus ran into its own export financing issues.
- Boeing has a defense unit in Huntsville (AL).
- Emerging Boeing rival Bombardier retains export credit financing support.
Weekly analyst report: Hold on Bombardier
Aug. 17, 2016: Bombardier’s first-half orders from Air Canada and Delta Air Lines for the C
Bombardier got a needed boost for C Series orders in the first half, but some analysts need more. Photo via Google images.
Series helped, but didn’t eliminate skeptics.
Canadian securities firm GMP issued a note Aug. 5 (though we received it only Aug. 12) that maintains a Hold rating.
Goldman Sachs worries about wide-body production rates and overall supply and demand. Morgan Stanley also points to supply-demand.
Pontifications: Getting there from here on Boeing’s deferred production costs
By Scott Hamilton
Aug. 22, 2016, © Leeham Co.: Boeing’s deferred production and tooling costs for the 787 program continue to be a focus-item by some
Boeing 787-9. Photo: Boeing.
aerospace analysts, media and observers: will the company be able to recover these costs, or will it inevitably have to take a write down.
Some Wall Street aerospace analysts believe Boeing can’t recover all the costs.
For example, Ron Epstein of Bank of America Merrill Lynch concluded Boeing will only recover about $14bn of the $29bn in deferred production costs.
Rob Spingarn of Credit Suisse pegs the recovery number at about $22bn.
These figures are before Boeing took a $1bn pre-tax “reallocation” to research and development for costs related to two more of the first six test airplanes last month in advance of the July 27 earnings call.
Boeing officials are confident they will recover the costs. LNC spoke with Wall Street analysts and Boeing to paint a picture of how Boeing expects to accomplish this.
Read more
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Posted on August 22, 2016 by Scott Hamilton
Boeing, Leeham News and Comment
787, 787-10, 787-8, 787-9, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Boeing, Credit Suisse, Dennis Muilenburg, Greg Smith, Rob Spingarn, Ron Epstein