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To mark the 20th anniversary of its inauguration, Boeing Business Jets has formally launched the BBJ Max 7, which will compete in the lucrative ultra-long-range niche.
The VIP airliner is a longer-range version of the 737 Max 7 introduced by Boeing in 2012 and earmarked for service entry with launch customer Southwest Airlines in 2017.
"We saw what Gulfstream has done with the G650 and the ER variant, and we knew that we could offer a BBJ with a similar range to compete in that segment," says Boeing Business Jets president David Longridge in reference to the ultra-long-range business jets' market-leading 7,000nm (12,960km) and 7,500nm ranges. "This aircraft has been a huge success."
Flight Fleets Analyzer records deliveries of 170 G650/ERs since the two versions entered service in 2012 and 2013 respectively.
"In the 1990s, Boeing was asked it they could offer a VIP aircraft with the 6,000nm range of the GV. We responded with the BBJ. Today, we are responding to calls from customers looking to fly even further in a [narrowbody] airliner-size aircraft."
Boeing has yet to confirm the range for the BBJ Max 7, but it will be in the region of 7,000nm. That is 800nm more than the baseline BBJ, which will no longer be produced after 2019.
The CFM International Leap 1B-powered BBJ Max 7 will have an 880ft² cabin – 70ft² more than the BBJ – and a large cargo hold. The aircraft will be similarly priced at around $100 million for a completed unit.
Green deliveries will commence in 2022, Longridge says – four years after the first BBJ Max 8, and two years after the first BBJ Max 9. Boeing launched these aircraft in 2014 and 2015 respectively. "We have already sold 12 BBJ Max models, but expect the -7 version to be the most popular," Longridge says.
To date, Boeing has delivered 162 BBJ/2/3s, 10 of which are now undergoing completion.
Source: Flight Daily News
