A Flying Leap : Boeing Seeks Early Clearance for Long Flights by Its 777

By JAMES F. PELTZ

Nov. 1, 1993 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Some people used to fear that an airplane flying faster than the speed of sound would disintegrate--until famed test pilot Chuck Yeager proved otherwise in 1947.

Aviation history is, in fact, replete with examples of how designers have overcome human fears about flying to push technology ahead. And now Boeing Co., the world’s largest airplane builder, is challenging the public “comfort zone” once again.

In a bid to drum up orders for its new 777 wide-body passenger jet--due to reach the airlines in mid-1995--as early as possible, Boeing is asking federal authorities to let the 777 fly up to three hours from the closest landing site.

That’s not unusual in these days of routine flight over vast stretches of water, except for two things: The 777 has only two engines, and Boeing wants that extended-flight permission before the first paying passenger ever boards the plane.

It’s a controversial request because, traditionally, twin-engine jets have received such clearance only gradually, after they have proved their reliability by letting airlines fly passengers over longer and longer routes for a year or two.

Boeing’s twin-engine 767, for one, earned permission that way.

But Boeing, facing intense competition from European rival Airbus Industrie and a slumping jetliner market worldwide, does not want to wait. Besides, it contends that the traditional “breaking-in” testing of a plane’s long-distance ability is no longer necessary.

The Seattle-based company says it has devised about 70 new tests to prove the 777 engines’ reliability, and that three test versions of the plane will fly 1,000 hours each--about the same as a year of airline service.

“With the kind of testing that’s going to take place, and the design, we’re going to get a reliable product, service-ready, from Day 1,” said Joe Ozimek, the 777’s chief engineer.

Boeing also says there has never been a commercial twin jet that crashed because it lost an engine--and then the second to some other failure.

Other twin jets currently in service include Boeing’s 737 and 757 models, Airbus’ A-300, A-310 and A-320 jetliners and McDonnell Douglas Corp.’s MD-80.

But passenger safety groups and the airline pilots union, among others, have reservations about giving Boeing approval for long flights before the 777 works out its bugs through commercial service.

Leo Janssens, president of the Aviation Safety Institute, a safety advocacy group, said the way around that fear is to stick with tradition and put the 777 through airline use first. “An operational test phase should be included,” he said.

The Air Line Pilots Assn., in a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration this summer, said the union is “skeptical” that Boeing’s own tests can supplant testing through actual passenger service, which it called “the cornerstone to proving reliability” of twin jets.

There’s much more to Boeing’s novel request than merely pushing technology ahead. Time amounts to serious money here.

Each 777 costs roughly $130 million to make. If, for example, Boeing sells 50 of its 777s two years early because it got immediate approval to fly the long routes, that means lost business for Airbus or McDonnell Douglas, which builds the MD-80 and MD-11 wide-body in Long Beach.

From Boeing’s perspective, the sooner airlines know the permissible extent of the 777’s range, the sooner orders will roll in. To date, 130 have been ordered.

Boeing will spend an estimated $4 billion developing the 777, and those early orders would help it recoup that cost much more quickly than if the 777 first had to earn its long-range clearance by ferrying passengers for two years.

The FAA is going to let Boeing take its best shot. The agency drew up conditions the 777 must meet during its tests; if they are met, the plane will probably be approved.

But it is unlikely that the FAA will decide the matter until Boeing is about to deliver the first 777--to United Airlines--in May, 1995.

“The FAA has promised us nothing,” Ozimek said.

Because United is the first customer, it is working closely with Boeing on getting the immediate long-range flight clearance. Some other airlines, such as American and Northwest, declined to comment, saying they have no position on the 777 request and haven’t ordered the plane.

Ozimek said the 777 long-range request is but one part of Boeing’s overall goal for the jet. The elaborate testing to prove the 777’s reliability will also prove its durability and help Boeing find any problems before the airlines do, he said.

But Airbus has its doubts. Without attacking Boeing directly, the consortium suggests that Boeing’s request for early long-range approval for the 777 is a key element to selling the plane--even though it could mean risks for the airlines.

“I understand that Boeing has a marketing need to achieve (early long-range clearance) as soon as possible,” said Paul Clark, marketing analysis manager at Airbus’ headquarters in Toulouse, France. But at Airbus, he said, “we still want to see a certain amount of service experience” for new planes.

In a recent report, Airbus also said that “what may well be a masterstroke of marketing by Boeing could in reality turn into an opened Pandora’s box.”

If Boeing’s many tests “have not identified potential difficulties” before the jet goes into commercial use, Airbus said, “then it is the airlines who will find them.”

Boeing 777 / At a Glance

Here are some facts about Boeing’s new 777 jetliner, scheduled to enter service in mid-1995.

-- Type: Wide-body

-- Engines: Two

-- Range: Up to 7,600 miles*

-- Passengers: Up to 440*

-- Price: Up to $143 million each**

-- Development cost: $5 billion

-- Planes on order: 130

-- Weight: Up to 590,000 pounds*

-- Parts: 3 million (including rivets, bolts)

-- Where made: Everett, Wash.