1,500th 737 NG

[BobK 0]

Congratulations to Boeing for the delivery of the 1,500th Next Generation 737, after only 7 years. No other aircraft family has sold that many, in so few years. HHere's the article:http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2004/q2/nr_040514h.html

[Guest ba747heavy]

Alright Boeing! That is a huge accomplishment.

[Guest jdu]

Did you know that Boeing has sold more 737NGs than Airbus has sold A330s ans A310s? 737NG - 1,500 A-310, 330 - 849. Also Boeing has sold, 941 767s and 1,050 757s. I don't have the numbers for the 747 or 777. Just some cool info!

[Guest oyvindhansen]

It isn't fair to compare sales of the 737NG with a widebody like the A330.- Oyvind

[Guest jdu]

Ok, so lets not compare the 737NG to the A330. Lets do the 757 and 767 against the A310/330. 757 - 1,050 orders, 767 - 941 orders, A310/330 - 849 orders.

[Guest oyvindhansen]

The 330 was launched years later than the 767/757, thus it would be natural to compare sales only over the period when they were both at the market. The A300/310 was never a big success I guess, and I consider them to be inferior to the 757/767. They also lack commonality with the other Airbuses.- Oyvind

[BobK 0]

Actually, I think that you'll find that Boeing has sold more 737s than Airbus has of everything in their fleet, combined. :)

[Guest oyvindhansen]

Well, duh! Boeing had been selling the 737 for almost 20 years when the A320 was introduced, so what would you expect? One can make an infinite amount of insignificant statistics to make things sound very impressive.Boeing has been around since the dawn of aviation, so naturally they've built a lot of aircraft. The companies that constitute Airbus also have a long history in aviation. But it doesn't matter, the only thing they have is what they can sell, and currently they are about fifty-fifty.- Oyvind

[Guest jdu]

Only 3 aircraft have sold more than the 737NG. The 737 classic, the 727, and the A320. It took the 737NG 6 years to reach the 1,500th aircraft, the 737 classic 10 years, the 727 12 years and the A320 14 years. Need I say more?

[BobK 0]

>Well, duh! Boeing had been selling the 737 for almost 20>years when the A320 was introduced, so what would you expect? Well, duh! Airbus started giving away A300s in, what, 1972? We're talking about all lines, not just A320s. Chill out - we're just talking about how many 737s there are out there. No need to get so defensive. :)

[Guest oyvindhansen]

Sure there are a lot of 737s out there. Still Apples and Oranges though. You have Boeing, introducing the followup to the the 727, the worlds best selling narrow body at the time. On the other hand you have Airbus, with no track record, and their only product being a medium size widebody with limited range, a category that is of fairly limited use for airlines. And that remained the picture far into the next decade.- Oyvind

[Guest jdu]

About the track record, Boeing has a record for making expensive aircraft, while Airbus now has a record for making cheap ones.

[Guest oyvindhansen]

Two different philosophies I guess. I am by no means an expert, but I have the impression that Boeings are a bit more heavily constructed than what is really needed. Maybe it stems from their background as a warplane maker? They also frequently use more powerful engines than Airbus (with the A320 as an exception). Airbuses are made to be fuel efficient, and to be comfortable to passengers (and that, in my own experience, is true, the A320 is roomier and more comfortable than the 737NG), but appears to be more "plasticy". There is, however no indication that Airbus aircraft are less safe than Boeings. As the missile strike incident in Bagdhad showed, even an A300 can take some battle damage :).

[BobK 0]

>the A320 is roomier and more comfortable>than the 737NG), but appears to be more "plasticy". "Roomier" = each A32X passenger in coach gets less than an inch more seat room than the 737NG (or Boeing single aisle) passenger, and less head room, due to the higher floor. It's amazing how people can "feel" that big difference. :)And, Airbus' per passenger, burn more fuel than comparable Boeing.

[Guest oyvindhansen]

Can't say that headroom matters much to me (I'm average height), so I haven't noticed that. However, I think there is a noticeable difference, at least in ones that SAS operates, and they generally use comfortable seat configurations. The walls appear flatter, the cabin is slightly wider. Don't like the small windows. However none of them is as good as the MD-80 series IMO (except the back of the cabin).- Oyvind