Abstract
The stiff market competition that exists between Airbus and Boeing was evoked by the emergence of Airbus after a long period of Boeing’s domination of the large jetliner market. Often referred to as Airline wars, this competition is a result of several corporate failures and mergers in the industry. While Boeing became powerful and dominant after taking over McDonnell Douglas, Airbus started as a consortium and the two airliners have grown to be the world’s successful jumbo jets.
Many other companies in the airline business have pulled out because of the poor market as a result of the economic downturn and this left only Boeing and Airbus as the main players in the market. Since these larger airlines require enormous support, respective governments have been giving aid to ensure their success. However, when competition seems to intensify, the companies start accusing each other of unfair tactics of competition. This paper addresses what both airliners have to offer.
Introduction
Planes are a great invention in the transport industry and they have been instrumental in helping to revolutionize movement and communication. The Boeing 747 and Airbus A380 are among the greatest inventions in the airplane industry. The Boeing 747 is a very big plane and is also referred to as the Jumbo Jet because of its size. Since it also seems to be very comfortable and very big in the sky, the plane is nicknamed the queen of the skies. This plane is two and half times bigger than the other model, Boeing 707, and it was first flown in 1970 for commercial purposes and carried the greatest number of passengers ever.
The plane has four engines and it is double-decked, where the hump upper deck is the first-class section. With only four engines, the plane was designed economically in terms of power and fuel utilization. On the other hand, Airbus A380 is also a big plane, a double-deck, and utilizes four engines like the Boeing 747. However, it is a European model while Boeing is made in America. Airbus A380 is now considered the largest passenger plane on the planet. It made its first flight in 2005. It was designed to compete with Boeing which had dominated air transport since the 1970s.
Pros and Cons of Boeing 747
This plane is very big, meaning that it transports a lot of people and cargo at once. Regardless of its size, the place is very efficient with its four engines. It has better utilization of fuel, and the latest models fly at very high speeds- supersonic speeds- of approximately 550 miles per hour (Rodgers, 1996, p. 12). The plane has a range of over 8,000 miles at 0.85 Mach. As far as safety is concerned, the plane has recorded very few crashes due to its design flaws (Pavnik, 2002, p. 734). There have been very few cases of hull-loss (45 occasions) since its invention in the 1970s and many of them have been attributed to pilot error (Rodgers, 1996, p. 12).
The plane was a success despite predictions of failure and it went on to become the most recognized and famous commercial plane on the planet (Esty & Ghemawat, 2002, p. 104). Most of the big names in the airline industry have few models of Boeing 747 to their numbers.
The 747s also have some disadvantages which include some unplanned breakdowns. There are also minor delays that are a result of operational failure of the equipment as they at times cause transitory lapses in production (Rodgers, 1996, p. 12). In case a Boeing 747 crashed, more people would be killed hence safety was made the top priority of these designs. Even though a lot has been done to enhance the prediction of problems, the planes still pose the risk of unforeseen danger (Esty & Ghemawat, 2002, p. 104). There has been problem with underpowered engines because of the size and the weight that the plane can accommodate.
The Pros and Cons of Airbus A380
The airbus A 380 had received surplus orders before the incidence of September 11 in the US. However as security measures continue to improve, the plane is regaining popularity (Campos, 2001, p. 13). The plane has several distinctive advantages which include a capacity of 550 passengers and a range of 8,000 nautical miles distance. This capacity is about 35% greater than the Boeing 747s (Esty & Ghemawat, 2002, p. 106). The key design objective includes being able to use the existing airport technology and infrastructure with very minimal adjustments and modifications. The direct operating costs for each seat are less than closest rival the 747s by 20% (Campos, 2001, p. 13).
The A380 plane also has more floor space and only more than 747s by 35%. This way, the plane has ensured wide seats for its passengers with aisles for greater comfort (Esty & Ghemawat, 2002, p. 107). The plane has low operation costs than its rival like Boeing 747 at a rate of 20%. The design of the plane has a reinforced safety measure program that utilizes modular computers. The planes are also designed to reduce nuisances caused by noise and there is minimal pollutant discharge (Campos, 2001, p. 15). The plane model has also been assessed and found to be having a unique comfort for its passengers with a very low fuel burn for its size.
The disadvantages of this plane are that in the aftermath of terrorist attacks on the US twin towers and following the stiff economic slowdown, the plane is facing a real problem to manage its capacity and security. The planes are underutilized as they can be left to lay idle for so long until numbers of passengers increase.
Due to its enormous size, the Airbus A380 cannot land at any airport. Even though the plane has more wheels, the problems are not the runaways anymore but the terminal space, the plane has more wheels than any other big plane and these are enough to absorb the weight. In the major airports across the world, very few can get space for the Airbus A 380. The plane takes more time to take off considering that security in major airports where the jumbo can land is beefed up because of terror threats. As a result, the process of inspecting the luggage, screening the passengers, ticketing and other logistics are a nightmare.
How the Two Models Differ
The planes have many similarities which include bigger capacity, employment of double-deck design, and effective fuel utilization. However, in an effort to determine which is the better model compared to the other, it is the differences that count (Esty & Ghemawat, 2002, p. 109). The Airbus A380 is slightly bigger with about 2 meters longer than the Boeing 747s (72.8 against 70.7meters). These simple differences are not a big deal, so this paper shall focus on the revolution that the two models introduced to the airline or aircraft industry (Irwin & Pavcnik, 2004, p. 226).
The Airbus A380 has the entire upper deck for passengers while the Boeing 747 has part of its first deck designed for passengers and can be used for cargo by moving the seats (Irwin & Pavcnik, 2004, p. 226). This has made the number of passengers almost double that of the other smaller planes. For the Boeing 747s, the maximum capacity is usually 568 passengers, whereas the major competitor from Europe, the Airbus A380 can accommodate 840 people. There are prospects of creating another model that can hold up to 950 passengers. This will be slightly cheaper in terms of traveling costs (Irwin & Pavcnik, 2004, p. 226). This is a very big revolution as the numbers of passengers who can travel are doubled since the invention of these models.
In terms of height, there is a difference of 4.7 meters difference. This means that the Airbus A380 is about the height of an 8 story building tall while its counterpart, the Boeing, 747 is the size of a 6-story building (Campos, 2001, p. 15). In order to hold the structure of the Airbus in the air, the plane requires wings with a very big area of 845 meters square. Boeing only needs 541 square meters. To meet the requirement, it means that the airbus has more weight and this has been a major issue for its success and sustainability.
The difference in the cabin is also great as the airbus has an area that is about 1.5 meters wider than the cabin space of the Boeing 747 allowing more comfort for the cabin crew. As indicated, these add up to the weight that the plane needs to lift. When empty, the Boeing 747 weights only 181,755 kgs (Serling, 1992, p. 23). The airbus on the other hand is about 75% heavier with a weight of 277,000 kg hence lift requires more power. Several innovations have been designed to ensure that the engines are efficient in doing this as safety cannot be compromised especially when the number of possible victims is very high (Irwin & Pavcnik, 2004, p. 227).
Regarding speed and performance, the planes are more or less equal. Their cruise speed is 900 km/h and the highest cruise is at 940km/h. The range is also close as the airbus has 14,800 km and the airbus has a range of 14,205 km.
This Boeing 747 seems to be an old model that is still valuable in modern times (Serling, 1992, p. 23). It took its maiden flight about 40 years ago. However, airbus deserves applause because, after the Boeing 747 model, the Airbus A380 seems to be the next big revolution in the air transport industry. The creation of bigger passenger planes still faces big obstacles as the landing gear are a real problem to design and manage on big planes (Irwin & Pavcnik, 2004, p. 228).
Regarding safety and flying ability, several precautions were specifically made for the two models. The Boeing 747 has a unique design that includes distinctive structural redundancy, superfluous hydraulic systems, four major gears for landing and double control system (Pavnik, 2002, p. 742). The design of the Boeing 747 did not cause major problem in the available airport despite it being more than twice the capacity that the largest airplanes and the time had (Pavnik, 2002, p. 744).
Boeing 747 Stepping Up
Over forty years ago, Boeing designed and built the world’s largest jet plane, and named it the Boeing 747. The plane brought so much change to the industry until the introduction of the Airbus A380 (Ibsen, 2009, p. 342). The airbus was designed to cut the domination of Boeing 747 and it came with many advantages, in terms of capacity, the efficiency of energy use as well as speed performance. Airbus then became a major competitor to Boeing.
Having been around for about 40 years, Boeing is at times regarded as old fashion (Ibsen, 2009, p. 342). Airbus being a recent model is gaining more popularity with the orders soaring high. This is what inspired Boeing to decide to improve its model the Boeing 747-8 model. This model has had new features including totally new wing designs to enhance performance and decrease drag (Norris & Wagner, 2005, p. 56). The intention of the new design was to increase capacity, add efficiency to attract clients drawing them from the Airbus A380.
Rather than designing a totally new airplane to compete with the Airbus A380, Boeing decided to give its 747 a makeover. The new 747-8 is extended replica of the latest 747 models and its extra space can take up to 52 or more seats. Still, the plane cannot carry a capacity close to or equal to the airbus A380 (Ibsen, 2009, p. 346). This, however, is not something to worry about, the Boeings say that the new model has cost advantage and this will be a determining factor in the current economy (Norris & Wagner, 2005, p. 56). The new 747-8 model is efficient in fuel utilization hence consumes 11% less fuel per passenger.
This has been calculated to translate to reduced cost of the important necessities on the flight for every seat with each mile covered (Ibsen, 2009, p. 347). Boeing has disputed claims made by airbus that it is still more efficient, burning 2% less fuel than the latest 747 models.
The new 747-8 claims to offer other transport options that cannot be provided for by Airbus A380 apart from the number of passengers. The airbus carries 550 passengers while the latest Boeing carries 450 (Ibsen, 2009, p. 349). There are challenges facing the numbers. First, the jumbo market is still small and incorporating cargo is good for jumbo planes. However the airbus has abandoned the cargo when that double-deck failed to attract customers (Flight International, 2006, para. 3). Airbus gets a lot of support from many European nations that are involved in its designing and manufacture and this means that Boeing will face an uphill task competing with it (Campos, 2001, p. 14).
Comparison of Specifications
- The Airbus A 380: the jumbo jet is long enough for maximum capacity and its length is 72.8 meters. This model has four engines, turbofans. Its characteristic cruise speed is 850 KM/h with a range of 8,000 nautical miles equivalent to 14,800 kilometers (Tripod, 2006, para. 2). It weighs 560,000 kilograms as its takeoff weight. The passenger capacity of the jumbo is 555 on its double decks arranged in three categories. It can still carry over 800 passengers when arranged in a single-class system.
- Boeing 747-8: this model also has four engines just like the airbus. The cruise speed is 855 km/h with a range of 14,815 kilometers (Tripod, 2006, para. 3). It weighs 435,456 kilograms as takeoff weight. Its 74.2 meters long and in the characteristic three-categories arrangement, the model carries up to 450 passengers.
Conclusion
It is very difficult to determine the best aircraft between airbus A380 and the main competitor the Boeing 747. This is because of the close similarities among the many features of these planes. The Boeing has been around for over 40 years and has had very few critical incidences threatening or costing life. This means that the model must have been a superior design to survive the test of time. For so many years, the model has been touted as the largest airliner across the planet.
Presently, the airbus has attained that status and enjoys pride. The Airbus carries a bigger capacity than 747s but with almost similar efficacy as the smaller Boeing. With a great change in the market, airbus has good technology and design that makes it reliable to fly the skies across the world. However, it needs to stay around for some time to determine its safety and reliability as time goes by. Airbus will be dominating the jumbo market in the future for an unforeseeable time because marketing is not about the time one has been in operation but rather the needs of the market. However, with the new 747-8’s about to hit the runaway, it could just conform that being the biggest does not translate to winning the fight.
Reference List
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