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Dubai: Boeing said it was developing a new single-aisle aircraft made of composite materials to replace the 737, its most popular aircraft ever, and expects strong demand from Middle East airlines.
According to the planemaker, Middle East carriers will purchase 383 narrow-bodied planes over the next 19 years. That includes the Boeing 737, its replacement as well as future models that incorporate new engine types that achieve greater fuel effic-iency.
Boeing has begun work on the 737-RS, a research programme to build a new aircraft to replace the highly successful 737, which carries roughly 170 passengers.
In the next 18 months, Boeing expects to arrive at a design template for the 737 replacement, with "notional entry into service" around the middle of the next decade.
"The technology to create an airplane that could economically obsolete the 737 and Airbus 320 class of airplanes looks to us to be around 2015, give or take," Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive Scott Carson told Gulf News.
The RS studies will draw lessons from the fast-selling Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the first aircraft made of primarily composite materials, making it lighter and more fuel efficient than previous models. These materials include carbon fibre, which Abu Dhabi hopes to manufacture for the aerospace industry as part of a diversification programme.
Earlier this month, Mubadala Development Co. said it was in talks to manufacture carbon fibre components for EADS, Airbus' parent company.
Interest
During the Dubai Airshow this month, Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker expressed interest in a 737 replacement. "I will be interested in buying more planes from Boeing if they can make me a narrow-body composite aircraft," he told Carson during a press conference.
Carson said there are a multitude of discussions going on within the Chicago-based company about the narrow-bodied fleet replacement needs of Middle East carriers.
"Saudi Arabian Airlines operates a lot of shorter range, single-aisle aircraft, and that should be a great opportunity for us to find a product that works there," Carson said.
Hurdles: Fuel costs a worry
Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive Scott Carson said mitigating factors could sway Middle East carriers' plans by several years.
"Oil is now almost $100 a barrel. The environmental pressures on carbon dioxide emissions, noise and other things have begun to very dramatically change the way we think about the future."
If airlines require even greater engine efficiencies, Carson said they might opt to wait until even more cutting edge technology is available.
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