![]() The program was launched in 1994, and the aircraft christened the “A380” in the year 2000. In stark contrast, the total orders of the Airbus A380 stand at 262: crossing the often acknowledged break even sales of around 200 airplanes. In total, there have been 100 orders since the program was launched about 8 years ago. Till date, there have been only 40 orders for the 747-8i (With 13 delivered to Lufthansa and one to a private operator), and 60 orders for the 747-8F (Freighter version), of which 32 have been delivered to Atlas Air, Cargolux, Cathay Pacific, Korean Air, Nippon Cargo, and Volga-Dnepr. ![]() But in early 2009, only one customer: Lufthansa, had ordered the passenger version of the airplane: the 747-8i. In was in the November of 2005 that the “747-8” was officially announced. Teams from Lufthansa, Lufthansa Technik, and Boeing sat together in shaping the 747-8. Which is why Boeing invested so much effort into the 787 Dreamliner program. Boeing had earlier maintained, in the face of the Airbus A380 launch, that the market for big airplanes, the likes of the A380, did not exist, in light of the changing trends in air transport. Lufthansa needed an airplane with a slightly greater seating capacity than its existing 747-400s, and Boeing was a bit lost on the replacement for its 747-400, the last of which was produced in 2009. The Boeing 747-8, is yet another Lufthansa-Boeing airplane. Which is why Luftansa proudly states, “The Boeing 737 –“made” by Lufthansa”. Boeing’s eventual agreement, and Lufthansa’s persistence, have made the fortunes of the airplane manufacturer. In addition, when the Boeing 737-200Adv was launched with new avionics, it was Lufthansa, Sperry (now Honeywell), and Boeing that froze the design of the popular mode control panel (MCP), the design of which is still largely retained on today’s Boeing 737NG airplanes. The cockpit layout was similar to the 727 and the 707s in the fleet. Gerhard Höltje, one of Lufthansa’s former Technical Directors, convinced Boeing to build the Boeing 737: a tailor-made short-haul jet for Lufthansa convincing Boeing wasn’t easy. In early 1971, Lufthansa’s jet fleet was entirely made up of Boeing airplanes. The airline didn’t accept the standard aircraft: It opted for the Rolls-Royce Conway engines in place of the standard fit P&W JT4A.īoeing’s flight deck and fuselage cross section commonality between the 707 and the 727 made the 727 a perfect fit for the airline’s need for a medium range airliner: it cut training costs involved with a transition from one fleet to another, for both the cockpit and cabin crew. ![]() The “relationship” between the operator and the manufacturer began with Lufthansa’s choice of the Boeing 707, over two other airplane manufacturers. Interestingly, both the airline and the manufacturer have the same roots: German. It is more than just an airline: It has shaped the history of aviation, and the fortunes of an airplane manufacturer: Boeing.
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