Airbus A380 or Boeing 747? The BIG question
In the 20th Century, planes got bigger and flew faster, further and higher. But today, a new word is in the air: ‘cheaper’. What does this mean for planes in the 21st Century, and for the two big companies that make them: Airbus and Boeing?
On paper, an easy way to make the cost of flying lower is to build bigger planes. One large plane with,say,400 seats, is less expensive to fly than two smaller ones with 200 seats. This was why, in 1969, Boeing built its first 747 Jumbo Jet, for 400 passenger. Boeing’s more modern Jumbo, the 747-400, still has good sales today. But is it economical to build a plane bigger than the 747? This is a more difficult question. Because of the high costs, the development of new planes is a dangerous business.
Airbus thinks bigger is better, and is spending billions of euros on its new A380 Super Jumbo, with 550 seats. But Boeing thinks its 747 still has a future, and doesn’t want to spend billions of dollars on a new, larger model. Large planes are a big percentage of both firms’ business. At present, each company has about 50% of the world market for passenger planes. If the A380 is safe, reliable and more economical than the 747, then Airbus can become the market leader. But if the first A380 has serious technical problems or, worse, safety problems, then the future of the Super Jumbo-and the future of Airbus-is in question.