Cargolux could seek capacity elsewhere after 747-8F rejection
I'm fairly new to Pprune, and maybe I'm breaking a rule here, because I am fully aware that another thread on this subject started life in "Rumours & News" on Friday, only to be moved to Spectators Balcony. This struck me and many people (see the thread) as a bit odd, in view of the fact that R&N is stated to be a forum for "Reporting Points that may affect our jobs or lives as professional pilots. Also, items that may be of interest to professional pilots."
I am a career aviation professional, not a spotter, and I would regard this CV rejection as a (potentially) major development, not least for the aircrew currently flying for all the -8F customers; Cargolux, Nippon Cargo Airlines, Volga-Dnepr, Korean and Cathay, plus those signed up as lessees with Atlas and GECAS. This is why:
- Cargolux has "bet the company" on the B747-8F, while its competitors have generally opted for the B777F, which is proving to be a stellar performer.
- Boeing clearly has significant issues with weight, SFC and therefore payload/range, on the -8F.
- Even if Qatar have recently joined the CV Board, they are still a minority shareholder. Their presence could not have forced the Board of CV into this high-profile confrontation with Boeing against their will.
- The likelyhood is, therefore, that the fixes that Boeing and GE have offered so far for the -8F are simply inadequate to restore the operating economics that are essential to CV's prosperity in the highly competitive, low-margin airfreight sector of air transport.
- After yesterday, nothing will be the same for the -8F. Every -8F customer will be speaking to Seattle as I write, seeking assurances that they will receive whatever concessions are offered to CV.
- And lurking in the background is the possibility, however remote, that the fixes CV need are not easily achievable......
Okay, the chances are that on Monday a press statement is issued from Seattle saying that the ceremony is back on, and that CV are back in the fold. If so, that's great. But that won't negate the fact that this is a very, very unusual step for a company like Cargolux to take, and that the concessions that Boeing will have to have agreed to may - yet again - change the delivery schedule for the aircraft. This must, surely, be a matter of genuine interest to many hundreds of operating aircrew around the world?