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Aviation History
1980
1980 - 2588.PDF
FLIGHT International, 6 September 1980 Farnborough International Air transport FARNBOROUGH 1980 is likely to be remembered as marking the resur gence of turboprop airliners after two decades of market domination by the jet and turbofan. A new generation of 30 to 40 seat turboprops, undreamt of at Farnborough 1978, marks the bright spot at a show where the big airliner manufacturers are pointing to the current recession, which is making it difficult to obtain firm air line commitments to a new genera tion of narrowbodied jets. Saab-Fairchild, Embraer and de Havilland Canada are bubbling with optimism over their forthcoming products. Embraer had amassed 78 civil customer options for the EMB- 120 Brasilia before Farnborough and expects this total to pass 85 by the end of the show. An announcement of up to 11 more from UK distributor CSE Aviation is expected by the week end. Embraer international sales man ager Fernandes Serra tells Flight that final specification and performance guarantees will be ready by the year's end and Embraer will then be in a position to ask for refundable deposits from customers. Deposit money will earn interest which will be repaid on signature of the purchase agree ment. The Embraer stand does not feature a Brasilia model, as the company only recently decided to increase fuselage diameter by 3in to eliminate the sunken cabin aisle and retain the existing 69in headroom. The rear baggage/galley/toilet area is still being revised, and Embraer plans to show the definitive full-scale cabin mockup at the Commuter Aircraft Association of America convention at Phoenix, Arizona, in November. In addition to civil customer options, another 25 to 40 Brasilias are the sub ject of strong interest from the Brasilian Air Force for use as com munications and light cargo aircraft. Further in the future is a possible maritime version—Serra says this will have anti-submarine as well as surveil lance capability. Pratt & Whitney Air craft of Canada has guaranteed sup plies of the Brasilia's PT7 powerplant to support a minimum airframe pro duction rate of three aircraft a month from 1984, when the type is scheduled to enter service. The existing EMB-110 Bandeirante 20-seater (two are being exhibited at the show) was delivered last week and the firm order backlog amounts to more than 50 aircraft, including military versions. Definition of the pressurised version continues and will be complete early next year. Deliveries are tentatively scheduled for 1983. Singapore Airlines' first A300B4 breaks with the Airbus tradition of displaying the company demon strator ship number 3. The aircraft is giving a remarkably lively display for a widebodied type "The Saab-Fairchild 340 is not a commuter airliner," say Saab execu tives. They insist that it is a mistake to damn the new class of pressurised 30-40 seaters with such a narrow definition—these are airliners in their own right, and are being certificated to standards as stringent in their own way as those applied to the big jets. Saab tells Flight that the company is now in a position to give firm per formance guarantees and is ready to book firm orders—the first are ex pected to be announced at the show as these words are written. The Saab- Fairchild stand shows the latest firm- configuration model of the 340. The number of cabin windows has been increased, in response to demand from potential customers, giving passengers a better view and more natural light in the cabin. The airstair is now stowed forward of the main passenger door—originally it was integral with the door—allowing dock ing at airport terminal piers. Saab executives say that General Electric has given "remarkable guarantees" for the performance of the 340's CT7 powerplant and the Saab brochure claims some 20 per cent lower aircraft fuel-burn than the PT7-powered Brasilia and Dash 8. Saab sees the market as encompassing airlines which are growing up from 20-seaters, and carriers which want to supple ment more operationally costly Fokker F.27 or BAe 748 turboprops. Price is being held to some $3*2 million (1980 money) and the link with Fairchild Farnborough stand newcomers are Shorts' 360 commuter airliner model (below) and the pressur ised de Havilland Canada Dash 8 (bottom), whose model incorporates wing and fuselage revisions
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