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Aviation History
1990
1990 - 1943.PDF
N EWS A NALVSIS BAe TESTS RJ WATERS m m BAe removes seats and derates engines to breathe new life into the 146 Although the battle of the regional jets will be fought and won in the USA, it is a foreign field for the contestants and one not lightly entered. The latest shot fired in what is so far largely a phoney war is the unveiling by British Aerospace's US arm of a "derated" 146-100, dubbed the RJ (for regional jet) 70 (for 70 seats). The unveiling at last month's Regional Airlines Association meeting in Washington DC was not a launch, but a "testing of the water". Launch of the RJ70 will depend on how US and European airlines react to the concept of a four-jet regional airliner. Should the water prove welcoming, the RJ70 could fly in the second quarter of 1991, says BAe. (FKgfa,4-10July,, P15) Critics argue that the RJ70 is nothing more than a thinly dis guised 146-100, sales of which have tailed off. BAe counters this by highlighting the regional jet's electronic cockpit and derated engines, which improve reliabil ity and maintainability over the original 146-100. Also questioned is BAe's wis dom in pitching the 70-seat 146 derivative so close to its 64-seat ATP twin-turboprop, so far a slow seller. The key to the ration ale behind BAe's move may lie in the ATP's poor sales perform ance, however. The 80- to 100-seat 146 has a commendably wide customer base, but fewer than 40 of the 186 aircraft on firm order are for key US airlines. The major re gional footholds are in United Express carriers Air Wisconsin and Aspen Airways. American Airlines and USAir are 146 opera tors, having inherited aircraft in takeovers (of AirCaland PSA respectively), but between them they account for 105 of the 226 firm orders for the 146's princi pal competitor, the Fokker 100. BAe's 19-seat Jetstream 31 twin-turbo prop, in con trast, has been remarkably suc cessful in North America, US regionals account ing for more than 200 of the 310 aircraft on firm order. Customers include the regional affiliates of American, Northwest, Pan Am, United and USAir. The 29-seat Jetstream 41 looks set to emulate that success, with ten firm orders from launch cus tomer Pan Am Express and com mitments for around 100 more including 50 for influential US regional American Eagle. The larger ATP has so far been unable to build on the success of the Jetstream, with United Ex press carrier and 146 operator Air Wisconsin the only US cus tomers to date for the 64-seat twin-turboprop. This lack of suc cess may not be entirely the aircraft's fault, however. The ATP's major competitor, the 66/70-seat Aerospatiale/ Aeritalia ATR72, has yet to emu late the US sales success of the smaller ATR42, although it has footholds in the regional affili ates of American, Pan Am and TWA. Large turboprops so far seem less than popular with US regionals. These carriers "Should the water do want §reater capacity, but prove welcoming, coupled with i nrtn iin • higher speed for the RJ70 COUld fly in whtch there are 7 QQ 1 " two distinct op- *" """" " tions — the high-speed tur boprop and the regional jet. Boeing Canada and Saab offer the former, and Ca- nadair, Embraer —and now BAe — the latter option. Boeing Canada has yet to launch its 70-seat, 350kt (650km/h)-cruise Dash 8-400, but has a considerable US re gional customer base for the -100/300 on which to build. The 50-seat, 350kt-cruise Saab 2000 has been launched and American Eagle holds options on 50. Canadair in effect created the regional jet market with its Chal lenger-derived 50-seat RJ but, while holding orders and options for 139 aircraft, has yet to an nounce a major US customer. Parent company Bombardier's purchase of Shorts killed off its competing FJX project, and gave Canadair access to the UK com pany's wide US customer base. Embraer quickly followed Canadair into the market with a stretched, turbofan-powered de rivative of its successful EMB- 120 Brasilia 30-seat twin- turboprop. Significantly, Em- braer's launch customer for the 50-seat EMB-145 Amazon is US Brasilia operator Comair. The Delta Connection carrier has signed a $700 million deal for the first 60 aircraft. While Canadair is firmly aim ing its RJ at the North American market, arguing that its 460kt cruise and 870nm (1,600km) range extends the reach of hub and spoke operations, the Em braer order is the first firm indication of US interest. It is into this divided and uncertain market that BAe has pitched the four-jet RJ70 priced at $18 million a copy, below the 146-100 but above the ATP. At $16 million, the Canadair RJ costs more per seat to buy, re flecting its higher development cost, and BAe claims its regional jet will break even, on 300nm routes, carrying 30 passengers. The RJ70 offers several attrac tions to BAe, not least the prom ise of extending the life of the 146 line at low development cost and risk. All that remains is to convince US regionals that the RJ70 is the best solution. • FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 11 - 17July 1990 25
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