Air Berlin Orders 25 Boeing 787 Dreamliners

In a press release, the Boeing company and Air Berlin announced an order for 25 787 Dreamliners Saturday, making it the largest order ever placed by a European carrier. The order brought the total number of 787 Dreamliners sold to 677.

Air Berlin, one of Germany's most popular low-fare airlines, ordered the 787 Dreamliners primarily for the new long-haul services the airline plans to introduce. The 787 is ultra-efficient, making it perfect for the long-haul fleets.

Joachim Hunold, Air Berlin's CEO, says of the order: "The 787 is perfectly suited for our new long-haul services. It is hands-down the best aircraft to deliver the optimum combination of fuel efficiency, environmental performance and passenger comfort that we need to successfully grow our business and deliver a superior product for our customers. Passengers will fall in love with this airplane. The 787's many ground-breaking innovations make it a powerful tool for profitability."

Air Berlin has showed interest in purchasing more 787s by securing 10 options and 15 purchase rights for additional planes.

The press release boasts that the 787 Dreamliner uses 20 percent less fuel per passenger than equivalent airplanes, and is designed to have quieter takeoffs and landings among comfort improvements such as better lighting, larger windows, and more storage space.

According to the plane's fact sheet, it has a cruise speed of 561 miles per hour and a top speed of 587 miles per hour. It is 55 feet, 6 inches tall and has an 18 foot, 9 inch cabin width. It will contain either two General Electric GEnx engines or two Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines. Air Berlin currently has not announced which engine it will be using.

According to a report from Boeing, the plane comes in three flavors, the 787-3, the 787-8, and the 787-9. The 787-3 variant is designed for short distance, high-density flights with special lightweight wingtips, among other things. The 787-8, which Air Berlin ordered, has longer wings than the 787-3 and is designed for longer flights. The 787-9 is for the longest flights.

Marlin Daily, vice president of Sales for Europe, Russia, and Central Asia for Boeing said, "Air Berlin's order is further validation of the 787's suitability for a broad spectrum of airline models. For global network and long-haul carriers, and for charter and leisure carriers and innovative low-fare carriers like Air Berlin, the 787 will be a flexible, profitable asset. The Dreamliner will be a magnificent addition to Air Berlin's growing fleet."

Sources:
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/07-07-2007/0004621220&EDATE=

http://www.boeing.com/commercial/787family/specs.html

http://www.aci-na.org/docs/41%20SAN%2005%20Dave%20Nielson%20Boeing%20787%20and%20747-stretch.pdf