| Global update |
Boeing, lawmakers upbeat
after multiple plane orders
BY MATTHEW DALY
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Buoyed by
an influx of new orders, Boeing Co.
appears to be turning the comer in its
battle with archrival Airbus SAS.
Boeing’s commercial airplanes
chief, Alan Mulally, conveyed that
message in a private meeting with
lawmakers Tuesday, backed by a
slew of new orders that testifies
to the company’s improving jet
sales outlook.
The latest evidence came earlier
Tuesday when Air-India announced
plans to order 50 new Boeing jetliners
— a deal worth $6.8 billion minus
undisclosed price discounts. On Mon
day, Air Canada said it had made firm
orders for 32 Boeing jets at a list price
of $6 billion.
Earlier this month, Korean Air said
it will order up to 20 of Boeing’s new
fuel-efficient 787 aircraft in a deal
worth up to $2.6 billion at list prices.
Analysts and numerous published re
ports also have said that Northwest
Airlines Corp. is negotiating an order
for a substantial number of planes.
“The momentum has definitely
swung in their favor, in terms of or
ders,” analyst J.B. Groh of D.A.
Davidson said of Boeing.
All the airlines involved in the
recent orders had been committed
Airbus clients.
“It’s not just sheer volume in
customers’ orders — it’s penetra
tion deep in the heart of Airbus ter
ritory,” said Richard Aboulafia, an
aviation analyst for the Teal Group
in Fairfax, Va.
Boeing’s stock fell 97 cents to
$58.61 on the New York Stock
Exchange on Tuesday afternoon af
ter rising earlier to $60, matching a
four-year high it also reached
earlier this month.
Mulally wouldn’t give specifics
about his closed-door presentation,
Taking off
Boeing Co. stock climbed more
than 15 percent over the past
four months.
Boeing Co. stock April 26
45
JAN FEB MARCH APRIL
SOURCE Telerate
AP
which lawmakers commented on
afterward, other than to say the
meeting “went really well. ” But num
bers released by Boeing show the
company is making inroads in the air
plane market after being runner-up to
Airbus in each of the past two years.
Boeing said that in 2005 it now has
57 net new orders plus unsigned but
announced commitments for anoth
er "238, compared with the 2004 total
of 272 orders. For the 787, it has a to
tal of 237 orders and commitments
since that program was launched a
year ago Tuesday, company
spokesman Todd Blecher said.
Mulally, a top contender along
with Boeing defense unit Chief Jim
Albaugh to become the company’s
new CEO, made an upbeat presenta
tion to Washington state’s congres
sional delegation on the day before
Boeing reports its quarterly earnings
results.
Mulally said the company was
pleased with the U.S. government’s
response to Boeing complaints
about subsidies given to Airbus by
European governments.
The Bush administration has
threatened to resume a trade case
against the European Union if Europe
goes forward with new development
subsidies for Airbus. Despite missing
an April 11 deadline, both sides have
offered to keep negotiating to avoid a
formal complaint with the World
Hade Organization.
“I don’t know how that will
come out, but we’re all very sup
portive of the United States and
Europe working things out. We’re
very encouraged by what’s going
on,” Mulally said.
Washington lawmakers also
were encouraged, but for a differ
ent reason. They said the company
appears back on track after a diffi
cult two years in which it lost mar
ket share and watched as Airbus
became the world’s top supplier of
commercial airplanes.
Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.,
said she was struck by the difference
in tone from a similar meeting with
Mulally two years ago.
“Basically it’s good news and great
orders,” she said, contrasting it with
Boeing’s recent troubles over an
ethics scandal and a business slump
spurred by the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Cantwell called the company’s
new 787 Dreamliner — which has
played a key role in new orders from
Canada, India and China — a “game
changer” and said Mulally deserves
much of the credit for it.
Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Wash., also
touted Mulally. “We’ve turned the
corner and are going to be able to
compete effectively with Airbus,”
Dicks said, referring to Boeing.
Dicks, the delegation’s senior
member, convened the meeting with
Mulally, saying it was time to re-es
tablish the monthly breakfasts and
strengthen ties with the jet-maker, the
state’s largest private employer.
018359
GOLF CLUB
822-3220
022126
A Glimpse into the
Diverse Lives of
Muslim Women
(Presented by ASUO:
Muslim Student Association)
1. April 28: Leila (Iran)
2. May 5: Osama
(Afghanistan)
3. May 12: Door to the
Sky (Morocco)
4. May 18: Informal
Panel Discussion
with local Muslim
women.
Time: 6 p.m. Free and
open to the public
Location: (EMU)
International Resource
Center
Refreshments provided
for first and fourth events
The messenger of God
Muhammed (PBUH) said:
"The most perfect in faith
amongst believers is he who
is best in manner and kindest
to his wife."
'"%***’'
IN BRIEF
Airbus A380 prepares
for maiden flight
BLAGNAC, France — After 11 years
of preparation and $13 billion in
spending, the world’s largest passen
ger plane, the Airbus A380, is sched
uled to fly for the first time today.
Weather permitting, Airbus test pi
lots will power the four engines on a
test model of the 555-seat “superjum
bo” to lift its 308-ton frame aloft. About
50.000 onlookers are expected for
what some are calling the biggest avia
tion event since Concorde’s first flight
in 1969.
The first A380 flight is tentatively
set to begin around midmorning and
could last for much of the day as the
plane circles the region, beaming
back real-time measurements of
150.000 parameters to Airbus head
quarters from its 22 tons of on-board
test instruments.
Industry analysts are keeping a close
watch on Airbus, which hopes to woo
customers away from rival Boeing Co.
with the A380 but has yet to prove that
it can turn a profit on its superjumbo
investment, a third of which came
from European governments.
As Airbus and Boeing spar over
what each calls unfair government
subsidies for the other, the rival aircraft
manufacturers have staked their suc
cess on competing visions of the future
of commercial air travel.
The A380, with a catalogue price of
$282 million, represents a huge bet
that international airlines will need
bigger aircraft to transport passengers
between ever-busier hub airports. But
some analysts say signs of a boom in
the market for smaller wide-body
planes, such as Boeing’s long-range
787 “Dreamliner,” show that Airbus
was wrong to focus so much time and
money on its superjumbo.
While plane enthusiasts have lined
fences in recent days at the airport in
the Toulouse suburb of Blagnac, Air
bus has warned that the first flight of
the A380, already about a month be
hind schedule, could be further de
layed by any unforeseen weather con
ditions.
— The Associated Press
Airbus trumpets its jumbo
Airbus' new A380 overtakes Boeing’s 747 as the world’s largest
passenger jet with double-decker seating for 555 passengers.
The air up there
The A380 is only slightly longer
than its predecessor but it stacks
two decks of seating and
stands nearly 80 feet
tall (to the top of its
tail), compared to
the smaller 747 at
just under 64 feet.
50 feet
Boeing 747
Airbus A380
Passengers 555
Wingspan
Cabin width
Main
Upper
Boeing 747
Passengers
Wingspan
Cabin width
262 feet
Winging it wide
Cabin widths are comparable
but the A380’s wingspan far
outreaches the 747.
NOTE: Specifications rounded to nearest foot;
747 figures refer to Boeing model 747-400ER
SOURCES: Airbus SAS; Boeing Co
AP
GERMAN CINEMA
GER 355 Summer 05
04 cred CRN 41 803
1 3:00 -1 5:50 MW,
1 3:00-1 4:50 U
Dieter Manderscheid takes us on an in-depth
analysis of various facets of German Cinema,
drawing on classic films from Fritz Lang to Wim
Wenders. Class is conducted in English. Fills
Arts and Letters & Multicultural IC requirements.