Boeing has started negotiations with airlines around the world over the future design of the popular 737 as it prepares to dominate that market. Boeing is already dominating the market for larger jets, exceeding rival Airbus’s orders. Airline input is essential in producing a new product that sells.
Over six thousand 737s have been sold since it was launched in the 1960s. It is on its ninth variation, but under pressure from the Airbus A320, Boeing has decided it needs a more serious overhaul. Several options have been drawn up as possibilities, including a wider, twin aisle version called Fat Boy and a shorter, single-aisle jet called Little Boy.
A new 737 would have to have the carbon fibre fuselage to make it more fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly. It is this development that has made the upcoming 787 Dreamliner so popular with airlines. By exploring multiple options for a new 737, they may be able to provide multiple models to cover all the options for passenger models between 100 and 250(the passenger complement of the 787).
Boeing is also halting orders of the 747-400, one of its most successful aircraft. New new orders will be taken as they transition to the 747-8. It expects the first freight version to enter service in 2009, with the first passenger version the following year. The last of more than 450 747-400 passenger planes were delivered in April of 200 and Boeing still has orders for 36 freighters.