Product Life Cycle and the Boeing 747 Source: McCartney, Scott. "Last Rites for a Boeing 747." wsj.com, https://www
Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2022 12:50 pm
Product Life Cycle and the Boeing 747
Source: McCartney, Scott. "Last Rites for a
Boeing 747." wsj.com,
https://www.wsj.com/articles/last-rites ... 1528291568,
posted 6/6/2018.
Only 180 of the original Boeing 747s, dubbed the Queen of
the Skies, remain in passenger service. Boeing built more
than 1,500 of them but the 24 orders that still remain on the
books are all freighters. Delta and United, the last U.S.
airlines flying the giant, both retired the 747 in 2018
to Arizona's Sonoran Desert, between Phoenix and
Tucson. It's an ideal place to store
airplanes long-term, and about 120 aircraft are parked
there now, scattered across the desert floor. The dry air
prevents major corrosion, so their parts can be used to help
keep other planes flying. About 50% of the retirees are
stripped and sold for scrap. But some end up working for air
carriers in Africa, Asia and South America, for whom
buying a used aircraft is a lot more affordable than
buying new, even though they are
less fuel-efficient.
Part 2
The 747 revolutionized international air travel in 1970,
bringing affordable tickets to the masses and making it far easier
to jet between continents. At the time, aircraft design was
more focused on supersonic planes such as Europe's 100-seat
Concorde. Not fully believing in the passenger potential for a
whale of a plane, Boeing designed the 747 with a distinctive
bubble top for the cockpit so that when used to
carry freight, containers could be loaded right up to the
nose of the plane. The 747 became the most identifiable plane in
the skies, and a symbol of American engineering and
manufacturing prowess in the 1970s and 1980s.
Part 3
But its 4 engines led to the plane's descent from
passenger airline service. Two-engine jets burn less fuel yet
grew to closely match the 747's carrying capacity. United had
374 seats on its recently retired 747s; its 777s carry 366
passengers and burn 25% less fuel. Airbus has also struggled
with its 4-engine A380 superjumbo. Over the past
12 years, only 223 A380s have been delivered. No airline
other than Emirates has placed an A380 order for over 2 years.
Part 4
Many airlines are moving to a business model that focuses on
connecting more cities directly with smaller,
more fuel-efficient planes, rather than funneling passengers
through a few large hubs. As we state in the text: "Products
are born. They live and they die."
Part 5
Critical Thinking Questions
1. The 747 appears where on the product life cycle curve in
Chapter 2?
A.
Growth
B.
Introduction
C.
Maturity
D.
Decline
Part 6
2. Why have Delta and other airlines abandoned the 747 for
passenger flights?
A.
It has 4 engines.
B.
It doesn't fit the city-to-city business model.
C.
It burns a lot of fuel.
D.
All of the above.
Part 7
3. Retired airplanes
A.
are often sold for scrap.
B.
often end up in the Arizona desert.
C.
end up working for airlines that can't afford new
planes.
D.
All of the above.
Part 8
4. The 747 changed the airline business model in the 1970s and
1980s by
A.lowering fuel cost.
B. carrying a large number of passengers economically.
C.replacing the popular Concorde.
D.charging a premium for flying in luxury.
Source: McCartney, Scott. "Last Rites for a
Boeing 747." wsj.com,
https://www.wsj.com/articles/last-rites ... 1528291568,
posted 6/6/2018.
Only 180 of the original Boeing 747s, dubbed the Queen of
the Skies, remain in passenger service. Boeing built more
than 1,500 of them but the 24 orders that still remain on the
books are all freighters. Delta and United, the last U.S.
airlines flying the giant, both retired the 747 in 2018
to Arizona's Sonoran Desert, between Phoenix and
Tucson. It's an ideal place to store
airplanes long-term, and about 120 aircraft are parked
there now, scattered across the desert floor. The dry air
prevents major corrosion, so their parts can be used to help
keep other planes flying. About 50% of the retirees are
stripped and sold for scrap. But some end up working for air
carriers in Africa, Asia and South America, for whom
buying a used aircraft is a lot more affordable than
buying new, even though they are
less fuel-efficient.
Part 2
The 747 revolutionized international air travel in 1970,
bringing affordable tickets to the masses and making it far easier
to jet between continents. At the time, aircraft design was
more focused on supersonic planes such as Europe's 100-seat
Concorde. Not fully believing in the passenger potential for a
whale of a plane, Boeing designed the 747 with a distinctive
bubble top for the cockpit so that when used to
carry freight, containers could be loaded right up to the
nose of the plane. The 747 became the most identifiable plane in
the skies, and a symbol of American engineering and
manufacturing prowess in the 1970s and 1980s.
Part 3
But its 4 engines led to the plane's descent from
passenger airline service. Two-engine jets burn less fuel yet
grew to closely match the 747's carrying capacity. United had
374 seats on its recently retired 747s; its 777s carry 366
passengers and burn 25% less fuel. Airbus has also struggled
with its 4-engine A380 superjumbo. Over the past
12 years, only 223 A380s have been delivered. No airline
other than Emirates has placed an A380 order for over 2 years.
Part 4
Many airlines are moving to a business model that focuses on
connecting more cities directly with smaller,
more fuel-efficient planes, rather than funneling passengers
through a few large hubs. As we state in the text: "Products
are born. They live and they die."
Part 5
Critical Thinking Questions
1. The 747 appears where on the product life cycle curve in
Chapter 2?
A.
Growth
B.
Introduction
C.
Maturity
D.
Decline
Part 6
2. Why have Delta and other airlines abandoned the 747 for
passenger flights?
A.
It has 4 engines.
B.
It doesn't fit the city-to-city business model.
C.
It burns a lot of fuel.
D.
All of the above.
Part 7
3. Retired airplanes
A.
are often sold for scrap.
B.
often end up in the Arizona desert.
C.
end up working for airlines that can't afford new
planes.
D.
All of the above.
Part 8
4. The 747 changed the airline business model in the 1970s and
1980s by
A.lowering fuel cost.
B. carrying a large number of passengers economically.
C.replacing the popular Concorde.
D.charging a premium for flying in luxury.