Cargolux to Boeing: "We ain't going!"

Cargolux Refuses Delivery of 1st Boeing 747-8F   

Boeing's infamous 747 "Jumbo Jet" has been stretched by 20ft, they've put a new, more aerodynamic, carbon-fibre wing on it and slung four brand new high-efficiency engines under the wings. Cargolux were supposed to take delivery of their new freighter aircraft on Monday (19th September 2011), but in dramatic fashion they walked away from the table on Friday (16th September 2011).

Boeing's 747 family currently consists of the 747-100, the 747-200, the 747-300 and the 747-400. The next one will be... you guessed it, the 747-8. Huh?

It's quite interesting how they chose the name for this one. The 747-500 and 747-600 were projects that Boeing announced at the 1996 Farnborough Airshow that never actually came of anything. In 2000, Boeing started to propose changes to the 747 design that they called the "747X", but would have been the 747-700. Again, a lack of interest from airlines meant it wasn't to be. By this time, Airbus had launched the Airbus A380 double-decker super-jumbo programme and their first aircraft would be the A380-800. Why had they jumped straight for the '8'? Well, they saw their primary customers being Asian, and '8' is a very lucky number in Asian cultures. (Think of it as the reverse of '13' being unlucky in Western cultures). So when the "next 747" project started to get some interest, they dropped the 00s and simply called it the 747-8. It looked fresh and modern, would appeal to Asian airlines and also matched the new naming convention they had chosen for the 787 Dreamliner project, which ran in parallel to the 747-8.

The 747-8 comes in two flavours, the 747-8I (Intercontinental), which is a passenger-carrying version, and the 747-8F (freighter), which is the cargo variant and would be built first. The first customer of the 747-8F is Luxembourg-based Cargolux, Europe's biggest (and the world's 9th-biggest) all-cargo airline.

Cargolux walked away from their first two 747-8F deliveries scheduled for Monday and Wednesday (21st September 2011) this week citing "unresolved contractual issues". They also state on their website that they will "find other capacities" if the conflict is not resolves quickly. As the cargo industry ramps up operations for the busy Christmas period, Cargolux probably isn't just blowing smoke. This points to a significant failing on the aircraft or Boeing. The issue is not financial, as Cargolux creditors, JP Morgan, have agreed to finance the new aircraft, a deal that has been put on hold for the time being.

Some industry insiders claim Boeing stated the 747-8F would be 10% more efficient than its predecessor, the 747-400F, but in fact it is only around 6% more efficient. This is a combination of missed targets with the Boeing airframe and the General Electric GEnX-2B powerplant. Others state the issue is around the Flight Management Computers (FMC) which Boeing offered with RNP (Required Navigation Performance), but didn't install in the two aircraft to be delivered. RNP is an electronic navigation standard that greatly improves the consistency of flight paths around airports, allowing for improved spacing, planning and noise abatement.

I'll update this story as more information emerges.