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Aviation History
1997
1997 - 1223.PDF
RAMON LOPEZ/WASHINGTON DC LABOUR TURMOIL and strike threats spawned by the introduction of new-generation "regional jets" have diverted attention away from an evolution that is taking place in both the airline and air craft manufacturing industries. This is the opinion of aircraft manufacturers, airline-industry pundits and air-carrier officials who say that the financial gamble taken by Bombardier in 1992 with the introduction of the 50- seat Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ) is already leading to new ways of conducting business. Canadair's grand experiment began with a stretch of the Challenger business aircraft, but later arrivals in the regional twin- jet field are offering very differ ent designs. At the same time, the selection has widened, with turbofan aircraft manufacturers preparing or planning to offer regional aircraft with as little as 3 2 or as many as 84 seats. FAA PREDICTIONS What has sparked all this inter est? According to the US Federal Aviation Administration, the regional/commuter airline in dustry continues to be "...the fastest-growing sector of the commercial-aviation industry". Over the past three years, jour neys and revenue passenger kilo metres (RPKs) grew at average annual rates of 7.2 % and 11.2%, respectively. The stronger growth in regional airline RPKs relative to journeys reflects the increased trip lengths of the routes served by the regionals. Since 1990, the average trip length of the indus try's aircraft has increased by around 70km (40 nm), to 360km in 1996. The increase is caused by the shifting of large numbers of low- density, short-haul routes from the major air carriers to their regional codesharing partners, who in turn have changed to larger high-speed turboprops and regional-jet aircraft. In 1996, US regionals carried 58 million pas sengers - 10% ofall passenger traffic in sched uled domestic air service. Projections show that by the year 2008, these carriers will carry 107 million paying customers, representing 12% of Cotrmir introduced the CRJ in 1994, feeding Delta's hub in Cincinnati, Ohio Regional jets find a home Regional jets are having a profound effect on commuter airlines in the USA from 2,100 in 1996 to 2,900 in 2008, an increase of 70 aircraft (or 3%) annually. Most of the growth in the regional fleet occurs in the larger aircraft cate gories. The forecast is that by 2008,68% of the fleet will seat 20 or more passengers, up from 42% in 1996. The move to regional jets and larger turboprops results in the average seating capacity of the regional fleet increasing from 31 seats in 1996 to 38 seats in 2008, the FAA adds. CANADAIR FAMILY Leading the pack of regional-jet manufacturers is Bombardier, which on 21 April completed the sale of 30 General Electric CF- 34-3 Bl-powered CRJ-200s worth $600 million to Atlantic Southeast Airlines, with options for 60 more. The transaction is the largest single CRJ order to date. Fellow Delta Connection carriers Com- air and Sky West operate 55 of the aircraft, and Mesa Air Group has placed firm orders for 16 and options for 16 of the $20 million aircraft. Atlantic Coast Airlines recently placed a firm order for 12 CRJ-200ERs worth $240 million and has taken options on 36 more. Earlier this year, Bombardier launched a 70-seat stretched derivative of the CRJ, the $23 million Series 700, with a firm order for four aircraft from French regional airline Brit Air. The company says that it has options and conditional orders for a further 28 aircraft, plus memoranda of understanding for another 35, including six for Taiwan's Great China Airlines. Eight airlines have signed agree ments for the General Electric CF34-8C-powered Series 700 aircraft, says Bombardier. The Atlantic Southeast and Brit Air transactions increased to 236 the number of CRJs on firm order, of which 159 have been delivered and 77 are on firm backlogged order. all domestic ticket buyers. Extra purchases of regional jets and large turboprops with ranges of up to 1,600km are expected "to open up new opportunities for growth in non-traditional markets", concludes the US aviation agency. The US regional fleet is projected to rise EMBRAER SNUBBED Atlantic Southeast picked the Canadian-built regional jet over the only other new 50-seat regional jet now available - the $15.5 million Embraer EMB-145, but the Brazilian aircraft maker still holds around 72 firm orders and • FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 7 - 13 May 1997 35
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