Pure speculation, but...

While the A380F may well have a lower tonne-km cost than the 777F, I wonder whether its larger size would result in significantly longer loading and unloading times. Those times must be quite important in the overnight package delivery business.

Might worries about these times be an additional factor in FedEx's decision? "Cheaper in the air, but could we still meet our schedules?"

Isn't the overnight business more time-sensitive than price-sensitive, if the price difference is not large?

As QF's "new" orders were simply exercising of options granted when the original orders were placed, I'd suggest that the price of the "new" orders had been set (or at least the formula for setting the price was set) when the original order was placed some years ago. Doubtless the terms on the four extra A330s were pretty sweet as well; I'm sure Airbus would rather book four extra deliveries (even if for sod-all revenue) than a written cheque on its P&L account.

But this sort of thing, plus the VS 'deferral', will simply allow a bit of squeeze-up for those who've spent too much to pull out and mean that Emirates' 30th-odd airframe will roll out a bit sooner.

Actually on the spending point, maybe FedEx's board were just at the point of having to decide on whether to invest in new loaders, etc. and they blinked... Anyone have any idea if MD10/11-compatible ground equipment could be used (or modified at little cost) to suit 777Fs?

Frankly I have trouble seeing how such large aircraft suits the parcel market. The big, bulk market, possibly, but parcels??

The much more interesting thing about Fedex is about what they are going to do to replace their DC10's and MD11's. According to jp airline fleets most recent annual listing Fedex have 91 DC10's or deriviatives. They are now the only really substantial DC10 operator in the world. The oldest of these aircraft are well over 30 years old. The youngest more than 20 years old. Sure the ownership costs are very low but fuel burn and manitenance costs must be very high. They must have to start replacing them very soon now.

They have 58 MD11's as well. The average age of these aircraft seems to be around 13 years. Add these to the MD10/DC10 fleet and it looks as if around 150 aircraft will have to be replaced over the next 15 years. That will require them to acquire 1 aircraft per month before expansion is taken into account.



Logically buying more A300's (but there are not many of them around and 767's might be partial solutions but it does look now as is Fedex will have little option but to buy a whole lot more 777's and probably 747-8's as well. Therefore I think we can expect to see Fedex ordering perhaps as many as 150 new Boeing aircraft over the next few years.

It looks like a good news story for Boeing to me. I might even buy some shares in them.

787-F... ???

The Big White Elephant:380
 

IT's getting serious now!!

FRANKFURT, Germany (Reuters) -- Airbus parent EADS posted a third-quarter operating loss on Wednesday after it took 1 billion euros ($1.28 billion) of charges as it grapples with costly production problems at its A380 superjumbo program.

The loss before interest and taxes and before goodwill impairment and exceptional items was 239 million euros, compared with a year-earlier profit of 559 million.

is it true FedEx cancelled their 380F's and ordered a boeing freighter?

http://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/s...6/daily16.html

So yes its true

So after 2 years, they're still 320 million up, with a potential world-beater, ( with a few teething problems maybe). Have faith. !

yup, thread here

Someone sent me this the other day....
"Work In Progress"

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...al/A380www.jpg

I do get the feeling that this will drive UPS closer towards cancelling their order. From what I gather, UPS only ordered the A380 as a switch for the A300/A310Fs they already had on order. From what I hear around the traps, UPS still had a whole bunch more to come from an order and Airbus wanted to close down the line, so they proposed that UPS cancel its remaining A300 order and be a launch customer for the A380F instead. Given UPS has recently ordered a couple of 744ERFs, you'd have to say that things aren't looking to good for the A380F. If UPS pulled out, I'm sure ILFC would get cold feet and either cancel their order too or agree to ice the A380F for some time later on.

TD. Having a look at the QF announcement on the ASX, they have, indeed, firmed up their options to the tune of 8 additional aircraft + 4 A332's however, in reading the statement, they have "Negotiated an attractive package to firm up an additional 8 A380's". I still think that they have done a deal with Airbus to make this announcement...nothing like good publicity for Airbus when it needs it! On the other hand, perhaps the "negotiated" bit was for the A332's. (maybe they were free!)

The statement also goes on about "...protection against any further delays...and slide rights in the event of changed circumstances." I don't quite see how ordering more will protect against further delays, unless this statement is about delay compensation.

ILFC converts Freighter to Pax
 

Looks like Brown is in it alone.

http://today.reuters.com/news/articl...-FREIGHTER.XML