Boeing has no plans to assemble aircraft once again in Asia, with the hard lessons it learned from McDonnell Douglas’ failed venture in China still fresh in its mind.
McDonnell Douglas, which Boeing eventually bought, started a Chinese ‘Trunkliner’ programme in the 1990s that envisaged the production of 40 MD-90-30Ts by Shanghai Aviation Industrial.
That number was later reduced to 20, and the programme was eventually cancelled in 1998 at the request of the Chinese Government with only two aircraft ever assembled.
Some industry observers believe it might make sense for airframe manufacturers like Boeing and Airbus to assemble entire aircraft in Asia, given the lower costs that the region could potentially offer.
But Boeing’s Larry Dickenson said in an interview at Asian Aerospace in Hong Kong that this is not something is company is considering.
“We did not do well in China with McDonnell Douglas and I’m not sure if we’d be keen on doing something similar again,” says Dickenson, VP for sales at Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
“We have totally changed the way that we are involved in China and the region, and that is a lot more successful.”
The airframe manufacturer feels that outsourcing the production of aircraft components, such as the work Japanese manufacturers are doing for the Boeing 787, and the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) joint ventures it has set up in China and India, are preferable investment strategies.
This is a different strategy from rival Airbus, which is pressing ahead with plans to assemble its A320 series of aircraft in Tianjin, China. Some believe this could be a precursor to its eventual involvement in Beijing’s plans to produce its own large aircraft, after its successful production of the ARJ21 narrowbody.
Interestingly, the manufacturing processes and systems that were used for the MD-90 are now being applied to the ARJ-21 programme. Dickenson, who was also part of McDonnell Douglas before its merger with Boeing, says: “You know, Airbus tried to assemble an aircraft in China many years ago and that did not work out too well. Boeing has certainly learnt a lesson from such a venture. We are sure that China has the capability to build a new aircraft without much help from outside. For now, we’re too busy with our programmes to join a new project with China.”
Asia, though, is where aircraft sales will be the most lucrative. According to Boeing’s forecasts, the Asia-Pacific region will account for 29% of sales in 2020, just behind the USA which is projected to account for 32%. The preponderance of widebodies among Asian orders, however, means that manufacturers will make more money from the region.
“Throughout the Asia-Pacific, with the exception of India, the infrastructure is growing at a rate that keeps up with the increase in the number of aircraft,” says Dickenson. “There’s some congestion in some cities, but this is by and large being alleviated by new projects.”
China is one place where there is a lot of money to be made by carriers, given the rising passenger numbers and growing wealth. Dickenson points out: “It is interesting that two of the most successful airlines in the world, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines, are trying to make inroads there. They’ve realised that the mainland is very important and it will become even more crucial. It will be interesting to see how that goes.”
Asia is also where airframe manufacturers are in a fierce fight. Hong Kong-based Cathay, for example, is deciding between the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8 for its next generation of ultra-large widebodies and both companies are in talks with the airline. Dickenson, however, feels that the decision is not imminent as the carrier has Boeing 777-300ERs on order and that is taking care of its demand for long-range aircraft.
Cathay has also been pushing Boeing to come up with a larger version of the Boeing 787 and Dickenson says: “We’ve kept them up to date on the programme and looking in terms of the capacity and the range. But we’re not sure when the availability might appear – definitely not this year, and probably not next year.”
Delays to the first flight of the 787 do not mean that the delivery to launch customer All Nippon Airways of Japan will be affected, he adds.
“The 787 is a very complex project, we have to ensure all the test procedures are in place, and the integration plans for all systems are there. At this point, we don’t see the entry into service will be affected. We still think that the aircraft will be ready to fly this fall.”
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Source: FlightGlobal.com
