Fair enough, Dave, but what do you reckon the Doric CEO is suggesting, then?
That's easy, he's suggesting putting 11-abreast in an A380.
And, as befits a CEO, he's the ideas guy and isn't about to get bogged down in the boring practical details ...
One might assume that if he is signing off on multi-billion-dollar orders he has some basic idea how much of a non-starter a structural redesign would be.
One might well assume that.
However, having worked for an aircraft manufacturer, I can assure you that prospective customers are forever coming up with all sorts of proposals for changing the spec, without which there isn't going to be a deal.
They almost always end up either walking away or buying the aircraft in its standard configuration.