Airbus is moving forward with a 550 passenger behemoth equipped with a gymnasium, lounge, etc.
--Baloo
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Vote Baloo for
Curmudgeon-in-Chief!
"I'm not as old as dirt, but I remember when it was under warranty!"
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"I'm not stubborn. I'm just right."
-me
--Baloo
P.S. I heard Boeing was planning on extending the upper deck of the 747 to create a high-capacity model, but I haven't heard anything in over a year. Anyone else?
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According to Airbus, the A3XX will have a wingspan of 79.8 meters (261.7 ft.) and a maximum length of 78.9 meters (258.7 ft.).
A more detailed look at the A3XX is available at http://www.airbus.com/family_a3xx.html
As for Boeing, they continue to maintain that a 550-seat airliner is not needed at this time. However, last week "Aviation Week & Space Technology" revealed confidential Boeing documents that indicate Boeing is considering its own 450- to 550-seat plane.
The concept plane, known as the 763-246C, would seat 454 passengers in three classes and 547 in a stretched version, and would use 4 777-type engines. Unlike the 747 and A3XX, passengers would be seated on one deck. But, airlines would also have the option of adding 82 sleeper berths above the first- and business-class seats. The earliest the plane could be put into service would be 2006.
As for the extended 747, Boeing dropped the idea of developing a 550-seat version, but is still considering more "modest" 747 and 777 variants.
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Lawrence Boucher <-- livin la vida loca
[This message was edited by LB4747 on May 05, 1999.]