Airbus and Boeing products running behind schedule

[jacko 8,814]

I did not see in the posts where anybody said the 18 were "ready to go"

 

Do not put words in other posters mouths please

For the most part they are done.... these are words that came forth.

They aren't, without engines, they aren't even aircraft.

[bigdelta 46]

Yep, on Singapore and Air Canada.

Flew on one from Sydney direct to Vancouver last year.

I like the configuration.

Perviously AirCan had to stop in Honolulu to fuel up on this route.

 

BTW in August I am flying on a Qantas A380 Melbourne to LA. Looking forward to it!

 

Good to hear.Were you in Business or Coach?

I'd like to hear about the 380 trip afterwards.

Edited April 30, 2010 by LTGTR

[Samsonite 181]

So the reality is that they are only part built

 

For the most part they are done.... these are words that came forth.

They aren't, without engines.....

You might want to take that up with that British firm known as Rolls Royce.

The launch customer, ANA, picked RR engines for their 787s. Rolls, unfortunately hasn't been able to meet their own performance specifications and are off by 5%, even now, two years after they and the 787 where originally suppose to have been delivered.

The first 4 aircraft of the test fleet have been flying with the initial RR engine, but will be refitted with the "new" version that is within 1% of spec and re-tested before deliveries begin later this year.

 

The GE engine meets spec and they are working to exceed their own performance guarantees.

 

BTW, the one of the features of the 787 is a standardized engine mounting system (forgotten what it is called) that will allow

engines to be changed quickly even if from a different manufacturer (if the engine was built for the 787, of course). I would

imagine there would have to be some software changes in the cockpit.

Edited April 30, 2010 by Samsonite

[bigdelta 46]

So,RR will be paying a penalty to airlines who ordered that engine-that's how it works,until they meet specs.

[Samsonite 181]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...id=a9UKBNbncX2Q

 

Airbus A380 Order Dearth Risks Double-Decker-Dud Fate (Update1)

By Andrea Rothman

 

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Five years after its first test flight, the Airbus SAS A380 superjumbo remains more than 200 planes short of making the program profitable.

 

Only one new airline customer signed up for the 525-seat jet since commercial operations began in 2007. Deliveries slowed to 10 A380s in 2009, from 12 a year earlier, as Airbus struggled to ramp up production of the world’s largest passenger plane.

 

The muted response for the Airbus flagship, with just 202 orders since the jet went on offer a decade ago, contrasts with a boom in global aircraft orders and sales that led airlines to sign up for more than 3,000 wide-body planes in the same period. Airbus says it is years from making money with the A380, which cost more than 18 billion euros ($24 billion) to challenge Boeing Co.’s decades-long grip on the market for long-haul jets.

 

“There’s only a handful of routes you can use the A380 on, and if traffic drops on that route you’re stuck,” said Richard Aboulafia, vice president of Teal Group, an aerospace analysis company. “The A380 is best regarded as a $25 billion write-off and an act of industrial irresponsibility.”

 

The superjumbo idea was championed in the 1990s by former Airbus Chief Executive Officer Jean Pierson. His successor, Noel Forgeard, pursued the plane with backing from Daimler AG and Lagardere SCA, the two largest shareholders of Airbus parent European Aeronautic, Defence and Space Co. Forgeard was fired in 2006 after a six-month delay on the A380 construction.

 

‘Winner’

 

Louis Gallois, who leads EADS today, said the A380 is a “winner,” and the more than 200 planes sold so far are a success, according to a May 4 interview with Bild-Zeitung.

 

“Its size is the only right answer to the congestion at the overflowing airports around the world,” Gallois told the newspaper, according to comments confirmed by the company.

 

Building the plane cost 50 percent more than Airbus had originally earmarked, as software glitches led to production breakdowns. The delays later stretched to 2 1/2 years. This year, Airbus aims to double deliveries to 20 planes, a goal the manufacturer itself has called “aggressive.”

 

Deutsche Lufthansa AG gets its first A380 this month, the second European airline after Air France to operate the jet. Singapore Airlines has ordered 25 A380s, and Emirates Airline signed for 58. The list price for an A380 is $327 million, though early clients get discounts, and Airbus also owed penalties for late deliveries.

 

Fuel Efficient

 

The airplane manufacturer markets the A380 as more fuel- efficient per passenger mile than older and smaller jets, allowing airlines to alleviate congestion to major airports and on busy routes. Airlines operating the A380 say it’s a crowd pleaser, attracting flyers with its double-decker layout, and on-board perks such as first-class cabins and cocktail bars.

 

“Our first-class suite optimizes beautifully on the main deck, and our business class suite optimizes perfectly for the upper deck and gives us both of these things that a single floor aircraft would have to compromise,” said Lyell Strambi, group executive of operations at Sydney-based Qantas Airways Ltd., which has six A380s in service, with orders to increase its superjumbo fleet to 20.

 

The superjumbo’s perks may prove less attractive in a market reeling from a global recession that wiped out six years of premium travel growth, according to the International Air Transport Association. Qantas is removing first-class cabins from some A380 planes, and shrinking business class to add premium-economy and coach seats on other A380s.

 

Lagging Indicator

 

Airlines stand to lose a collective $2.8 billion this year, down from about $9.4 billion in 2009, according to a forecast IATA made before travel disruptions caused by a volcanic ash cloud last month cost airlines billions in lost revenue.

 

The effects from rising or contracting air travel can take more than a year to feed through to manufacturers, as airlines take time to adapt their order patterns to demand. Manufacturers estimate that there’s typically a six-month lag between the time airlines’ profit rebounds and when they begin ordering new aircraft.

 

Even as the economy picks up steam, airlines may be no more inclined to order the jet than during the recession. Several A380 customers have sought deferrals, while maintaining deliveries of smaller, wide-body planes. Those postponing include Air France KLM group, Etihad, Qatar Airways Ltd. and Virgin Atlantic Airways.

 

Virgin Delays

 

Virgin deferred the first of six planes on order to 2013 from 2009. The carrier has since pushed the date out to as late as 2015 and is indefinite about taking delivery at all.

 

“We’ve left our options open to see where that plane is by 2015 and where the market is,” Chief Executive Steve Ridgway said in a telephone interview April 28.

 

Virgin is now looking at Airbus’s A350, which seats 300 to 350, and plans to take delivery of 15 Boeing 787s as soon as they’re available, the CEO said. The 787, built in large parts from composite materials, seats 250 to 300 people.

 

The rise of the wide-body market has been helped by more reliable engines, opening up long routes to twin-engine planes such as the Boeing 777 and 787 and Airbus A350. Aviation regulators said in 2007 that jetliners with two engines are as safe as those with three or four, providing less reason for carriers to pick planes such as the A380 or competing 747-8.

 

Small in Japan

 

Before it even flew, Airbus predicted sales for the A380 of as many as 1,000. Today, Airbus’s official prediction for the next 20 years is 1,300 plane sales in the jumbo category, including the Boeing 747-8. Boeing sees potential for 740 units.

 

Aviation analysts are less optimistic. Over the next 10 years, airlines worldwide will take deliveries of an estimated 100 very large planes and about 450 wide-body jets, according to a forecast released May 4 by Ascend Worldwide Ltd., a London- based aviation adviser and forecaster.

 

One market where Airbus has so far failed to sell the A380 is Japan, a country it had targeted as one of the biggest recipients because of its dense population. Japanese airlines have been the largest operators of Boeing’s 747 jumbo plane, where the jet is used on domestic routes.

 

Airbus’s market share has been less than 5 percent in Japan over the last decade, with no order backlog. That compares with Boeing’s order backlog of 173 aircraft in the country.

 

Boeing’s Boom

 

Occupancy rates on routes where the A380 flies are as much as 10 percent higher than on models by competitors, said Richard Carcaillet, Airbus’s marketing director for the plane. That advantage means Japanese airlines will have no choice but to acquire the aircraft as carriers including Air France begin flying into Tokyo’s Narita, he said.

 

“There is strong potential in Japan and the U.S.,” he said. “Maybe not in two years, maybe in five years, or eight years, but these carriers will in my view end up deciding on the A380.” Carcaillet predicts at least another 600 sales of A380s.

 

Even if Carcaillet were proven right, Airbus would sell less than half as many A380s than Boeing has delivered of its 747 jumbo jet since the model was launched in 1969. When the plane first flew, it was twice as large as anything else and offered more range than any other commercial transport, opening the door to inexpensive, mass transport.

 

Wide-Body Revolution

 

In the four decades that followed, wide-body models with long range and greater flexibility moved into the market for long-haul flights. Boeing’s 787, entering service late this year, already has 866 orders and Airbus’s A350, entering service in 2013, has 530 orders for the jet.

 

As wide-body jets made from composite materials flock to the market, Airbus may find that its A380, with a maximum takeoff weight of 569 tons, lacks the flexibility that airlines demand to address travelers’ growing preference for direct flights instead of landing at major airports and then switching.

 

“The market for the plane is too limited to ever make any real money, and I don’t think the end of the recession will change that,” said Hans Weber, president of aerospace advisory firm Tecop International in San Diego. “It’s been well-received by passengers and done pretty well as far as reliability but the market’s probably limited to no more than another 200 planes.”

 

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrea Rothman in New York via aerothman@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 5, 2010 08:04 EDT

 

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...id=a9UKBNbncX2Q

[bigdelta 46]

Boeing says Dreamliner on track for 2010 delivery.

 

HAMBURG, May 9 (Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) is on track to deliver its first 787 Dreamliner, which will compete with Airbus's (EAD.PA) A380 jet, the company's head of commercial airplanes said late on Saturday.

 

Boeing is due to deliver the first 787 to All Nippon Airways (9202.T) by the end of this year.

 

"Testing is going well. If there are no unexpected discoveries, we'll be on track," said James Albaugh, President and Chief Executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes on the sidelines of an event.

 

Production of the carbon-composite airplane was delayed five times in three years, and the first flight was postponed six times, due to a shortage of bolts, faulty design and a two-month strike at its factory.

 

Some market experts have said the delivery schedule for the Dreamliner, which made its first test flight in December after two years of delays, is too ambitious. Boeing has already received more than 850 orders for the plane.

Boeing and rival Airbus were dogged in 2009 by fewer orders for planes as carriers around the world grappled with falling travel demand in a sagging economy. But a recovering economy and brighter outlook for airlines point to a stronger 2010.

Boeing shares have rallied about 26 percent this year on expectations of a commercial rebound.

The company reported a higher-than-expected first-quarter profit despite making fewer deliveries as it held down costs at its commercial airplane division [iD:nN20252563].

EADS's shares have meanwhile eased 3.8 percent on persistent cost problems on the A380 aircraft as well as concern that the company could be hit with additional costs related to the delayed A400M military transport plane.

 

Commenting on the planned merger of United Airlines parent UAL Corp (UAUA.O) and Continental Airlines (CAL.N), which will create the world's biggest airline, Albaugh said he expected the carriers to profit from the deal.

 

He sidestepped a question on whether the two airlines could cancel some outstanding aircraft orders as a result of the merger, saying only that he had sent the companies congratulatory notes via e-mail.

 

The merger was expected to trigger a scramble between Boeing and Airbus, as well as engine makers, over the fate of almost $22 billion in outstanding plane orders and control of any future fleet replacement decisions.

 

Both Continental and United have order for Boeing planes, including 35 single-aisle 737s and 50 Dreamliners.

 

"I expect they will rationalise their fleets," Albaugh said, without being more specific.

 

Albaugh also said Boeing still plans to announce in June whether it will increase production of its 737 single-aisle plane from its current rate of 31 planes per month.

 

The company has not yet said by how much it would raise the production rate.

Edited May 10, 2010 by LTGTR

[bigdelta 46]

Airbus hikes A380 sales target-

Doubles 2010 target to more than 20 superjumbos

 

* Sales chief says single-aisle output could rise again

* No decision on re-engining project

PARIS, May 10 (Reuters) - European planemaker Airbus (EAD.PA) doubled its target for 2010 sales of its A380 superjumbo to more than 20 on Monday, saying a rebound in passenger traffic pointed to resilience in the world economy.

 

The world's largest passenger jet manufacturer also signalled confidence in a relatively shallow downturn in the aircraft business cycle by saying production could rise again following an increase already planned for later this year.

 

The comments came in a briefing by Airbus sales director John Leahy, monitored by webcast.

 

Leahy, who earlier this year forecast sales of up to 10 A380s worth $340 million each in 2010, said sales of the world's largest airliner could exceed 20 this year.

 

Airbus, which competes with Boeing (BA.N), has predicted a total of 250-300 plane orders in 2010 and deliveries from previous sales in line with last year's record total of 498.

 

It has found buyers for a total of 202 A380s but critics say the 525-seat plane, which entered service in 2007, has sold relatively poorly compared to upcoming mid-sized models because it is restricted to flying between large intercontinental hubs.

 

Leahy said airline traffic was recovering from recession and that sharp growth in freight volumes carried by air indicated a strong recovery in the global economy. Over the long term, the growth of "megacities" would support A380 sales.

 

"You can't have economic recovery without air traffic and you can't have air traffic without aircraft," Leahy said.

 

Several airlines earlier reported drops of up to a quarter in traffic in April due to the volcanic ash crisis but Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) said the underlying picture was positive.

Leahy said aircraft production was likely to be less volatile than the 30 percent drops from peak to trough seen in previous downturns, since Airbus and Boeing had shown restraint.

 

Airbus cut production of the A320-family short to medium-haul planes to 34 a month from 36 in October but has since announced plans to reverse the cut later this year. Leahy said the move after that was "more likely to be up rather than down". He said Airbus had not yet decided whether to push ahead with a possible project to upgrade the engine on the A320 family, whose single-aisle plane category is seen as the lifeblood for both Airbus and Boeing, with its rival 737.

 

The "re-engining" project is designed to deliver interim fuel savings before a new generation of aircraft becomes available next decade and would cost $1 billion, Leahy said.

 

Boeing has hinted it might pass on the re-engining and try to leapfrog Airbus by moving straight to an all-new plane earlier than anticipated, but Leahy predicted that Boeing would follow suit if Airbus decided to put new engines on the A320.

 

He said a decision may not be ready for a few months and there was a case to be made both for and against re-engining.

 

The re-engining project is significantly cheaper than the cost of a new plane, which would need an investment of $10-12 billion, but engine makers say the technology available for an all-new generation will not be available before next decade.

[wacmedia 277]

Hi,

 

New tax regime in England which will tax per plane not per customer should help A380 with its high passenger count.

[bigdelta 46]

ANA Pilots First Customer Crew to Fly Boeing 787 Dreamliner:

 

SEATTLE, May 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Boeing (NYSE:BA - News) and two ANA (All Nippon Airways) pilots flew the Boeing 787 Dreamliner for the first time Wednesday. The airplane they flew is the first of six flight-test airplanes. The two-hour-and-40-minute flight took place over Washington state.

 

Flying the 787 for the first time were ANA pilots Capt. Masayuki Ishii, director of 787 pre-operations planning, and Capt. Masami Tsukamoto, manager of 787 pre-operations pilots. On board were Capt. Mike Carriker, Boeing 787 chief test pilot, Capt. Christine Walsh and Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 program, Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

 

"The flight was a customer demonstration for our launch customer's lead pilots to evaluate the 787," said Fancher. "We are extremely proud to have ANA on the flight, and have the opportunity to show what a great airplane the men and women of Boeing have created."

 

The flight was conducted under a special airworthiness certificate granted by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.

 

The 787 program was launched in April 2004 with a record order of 50 787's from ANA. ANA, which plays an active role as launch customer, is scheduled to take the first 787 delivery in the fourth quarter 2010.

 

During the flight, both pilots performed multiple takeoffs and landings as well as other maneuvers that allowed them to feel the airplane's characteristics. The pilots also gained experience with other 787 flight-deck features, including larger display screens, dual head-up displays and dual electronic flight bag.

 

"It was fantastic and an incredible experience," said Capt. Ishii. "ANA passengers are in for an incredible experience when they fly on the 787," he said.

 

"The flight was fantastic," said Capt. Tsukamoto. "I've been waiting for this day since we made the launch order, and today my dream came true."

 

During the flight, Carriker showed the ANA pilots, who are both rated on the Boeing 777, the similarities and differences between the two airplanes. Pending regulator approval, it will take as few as five days of training for 777 pilots to become qualified as 787 pilots.

 

Customers around the world have ordered 860 787s since the program was launched in April 2004, making the Dreamliner the fastest-selling new commercial jetliner in history.

[BigDUSA 71]

Patience, America. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is coming. (Click here for graphic.)

 

Big windows. High ceilings. Overhead bins that will hold those overstuffed carry-ons. Wireless entertainment (and office e-mail) to your seat. More natural air so your face doesn't feel like it spent six hours in the Sahara Desert.

 

An artist's conception of a 787 Dreamliner with the new aircraft color scheme for the combined United-Continental airline. The airline would keep the United name, but the colors would be Continental's, including its abstract globe design on the tail.It could receive its first 787 late next year.

 

No more aging airliners on domestic routes, where the average age of a major jet is nearly 15. No more busted arm rests, 1990s-era TV sets hanging from the ceiling, duct-taped carpet and banged-up bathrooms. No more wasted space for kitchen galleys from the era before airlines decided to starve their customers. No more tiny windows that you have to crane to see out. All gone.

 

Starting ... someday.

 

When? Maybe the end of this year. In Japan. All Nippon Airways gets the first 787.

 

When will Americans be able to fly this American-made aircraft on routes within America?

 

Someday.

 

It likely will be on an airline that doesn't even exist yet – the newly merged United and Continental awaiting approval from the feds. Maybe late next year.

 

And don't look for it at John Wayne Airport – it's too big and heavy for us.

 

Still, the Dreamliner is likely going to be part of your traveling for most of the rest of your life. With more than 800 on order, it will fill the skies until well toward the middle of the century.

 

I had hoped to be flying regularly on the Dreamliner by now – it's two years behind schedule. So I had to travel up to Seattle, Boeing's home (if no longer its headquarters, which moved to Chicago several years ago) to take a look.

 

I could have gone to the assembly plant in Everett, Wash., to see the engineering marvels of the swept-wing jet, it's thrifty General Electric GEnx (bet the engineers didn't come up with the cutesy name) and lightweight composite body. I could have heard how mechanics on the ground could monitor the plane while it was in the air via wireless updates.

 

Great stuff. But I wanted inside. Where I and the rest of the traveling public would spend hundreds or even thousands of hours for the rest of our traveling lives.

 

I came away impressed – and disappointed.

 

To see the inside the Dreamliner, I didn't board a plane but instead went inside an office park. Boeing operates the equivalent of an interior furnishings showroom for customers off a wooded road in Reston, just south of Seattle.

 

Kent Craver, the "regional director of passenger satisfaction and revenue," showed me around a mock-up of the 787 interior. He's a cool, smart, calm-voiced evangelist for Boeing's goods.

 

Craver said Boeing knows that any aircraft manufacturer has a built-in problem with their customers.

 

"No one would choose to sit for several hours on a plane," he said. "They're bored or angry when using our product."

 

The company consulted with psychologists, cultural anthropologists – and Disney – to improve the passenger experience without getting in the way of the revenue stream of their real customers, the airlines.

 

The key is trying to get people away from the feeling that they are being forced into a very large toothpaste tube. With airports a source of traveler anxiety, the move onto the airplane should also signal a switch in attitude.

 

"We want to create a psychological separation so people leave their ground experience on the ground and feel welcomed," Craver said.

 

It starts with an open lobby-like area at the aircraft doorway. On entry, there's a lot to like. Sculpted design and LED lights give the interior a feeling – perhaps illusion – of height, width and light. I was pleased to see that individual overhead air blowers were back, so your seatmate's garlic-soaked carry-on lunch can be counterattacked.

 

"As much as possible, people want a personal space that they can control," Craver said.

 

Bathrooms are bigger, so passengers can change clothes without squirming around like a crazy man in a straightjacket.

 

Even the big bins are psychologically calming. No worries that you won't be able to store your bag over your seat. The powerful hinges don't require Herculean strength on your tippytoes to close.

 

Up front, it's a wonderful world of fold-flat first-class seats and fat business-class seats that look like flying La-Z-Boy recliners designed by the Jetsons. Boeing expects that the 787 will become the go-to airliner of the high-end flier.

 

"The business traveler knows his or her aircraft because they spend so much time on them," Craver said. "This plane will be preferred, extremely preferred, by business travelers."

 

Great! And how about the rest of us?

 

Welcome back to reality.

 

No matter what designers pull out of their bag of tricks, the crush of economy-class seats, even when empty in a showroom, brings on shudders. Boeing has suggested to airlines that they use a civilized "3-2-3" seat layout of eight seats per row, separated by two aisles.

 

Sorry. Most airlines have opted for the "other" option of adding one more seat per row for an elbow-crunching, nine-across "3-3-3" layout. The future of flight might be brighter and more colorful, but it comes with the nightmare of 17.2-inch-wide seats creating the familiar sardine effect in economy class.

 

"It all comes down to revenue," Craver said. "In economy class, it is all about price, and most passengers are not willing to pay a dime for extras, including space."

 

Craver said the 787 will be an improved flight experience, even for those in the airliner equivalent of steerage. And if the day dawns when economy passengers are willing to pay more for comforts, Boeing's designers are ready.

 

"If the market wants it, we will come up with it," Craver said.

 

Someday.

 

Contact the writer: travel@ocregister.com

[BigDUSA 71]

CHICAGO – Boeing said it will fix a design flaw in the tail section of its new 787, and it still expects to start delivering the plane by the end of this year.

 

Spokeswoman Yvonne Leach said on Tuesday that testing showed that the outer skin of the plane and the bracket-like piece of metal that holds it near the tail could separate slightly. She said Boeing will change the way the device is made, and that should fix the problem.

 

The problem includes the tail cone and the piece of the fuselage near the horizontal stabilizer, the part on the tail that looks like a wing. The tail cone is made by Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd., and the fuselage section was made by Boeing at its plant in Charleston, South Carolina. Leach said the parts were made to specifications but the specifications need to be changed.

 

Boeing will fix all but the first three planes it produced, she said. Those first three planes are being used for testing only and will not be delivered to customers.

 

Boeing Co. has told suppliers to stop delivering 787 parts for almost five weeks. Leach said the design problem was one small part of that delay, but not the main cause.

 

The issue was reported Monday on FlightBlogger, part of the Flightglobal aviation news website.

Quote AP

[TheFiend 1,181]

CHICAGO – Boeing said it will fix a design flaw in the tail section of its new 787, and it still expects to start delivering the plane by the end of this year.

 

Spokeswoman Yvonne Leach said on Tuesday that testing showed that the outer skin of the plane and the bracket-like piece of metal that holds it near the tail could separate slightly. She said Boeing will change the way the device is made, and that should fix the problem.

 

Yet another design fault!!!

[wacmedia 277]

Leach said the parts were made to specifications but the specifications need to be changed.

 

Hi,

 

Not blaming outside contactors on this one. Trouble ahead if Boeing are to be believed.

 

Ageing workforce creates skills shortages for US manufacturers

 

By Hal Weitzman in Chicago

 

Published: March 1 2010 02:00 | Last updated: March 1 2010 02:00

 

Manufacturing companies in the US are struggling to find workers with technical skills even though the sector has shed more than 2m jobs in the past two years. The shortage of skilled staff could restrict companies' ability to step up production as the economic recovery gathers pace.

 

In interviews with the Financial Times, groups ranging from Boeing - one of the US's biggest manufacturers and exporters - to small companies also said they faced a wave of skilled workers reaching retirement age in the next few years, with a shortage of younger workers to replace them.

 

"All large technical firms are facing similar issues, where a large part of the population is eligible to retire," said Rick Stephens, senior vice-president of human resources at Boeing.

 

He said that by 2015, 40 per cent of the aircraft maker's workers would be in that position. "That's some 60,000 employees eligible to retire in five years. We just don't see the [recruitment] pipeline meeting our needs."

 

About 19 per cent of US manufacturing workers are 54 and older, roughly the same as for the workforce as a whole, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, only 7 per cent of manufacturing workers are under 25 years old - half that of the wider workforce.

 

For many industrial companies, the recession has not eased the skills shortage. Siemens, the German engineering group, has about 600 vacancies for engineers in the US, up from 500 on last year, according to Jim Whaley, president of the Siemens Foundation, which promotes technical education in the US.

 

Manufacturers said the biggest shortages were for engineers and skilled floor workers.

 

"It's difficult to find people for assembly, machining and motor-winding positions - jobs that require maths skills and the ability to read technical blueprints," said Ron Bullock, owner of Bison Gear, a manufacturer near Chicago with 225 employees.

 

Many in the sector said workers had delayed their retirement because of the financial crisis. But, as the economy recovers, they expect a large number of skilled workers to leave.

 

"As we go through the recovery, the situation will get worse," said Lisa Simeon, a director of talent acquisition in the defence unit of ITT, the US industrial conglomerate.

[Samsonite 181]

Yet another design fault.

Sigh... One more time for the, obviously, extremely obtuse: That is what testing programs are for, i.e., to find the problems and fix them before the aircraft goes into service.

[Samsonite 181]

"DATE:20/05/10

SOURCE:Air Transport Intelligence news

A380-900 and freighter both on 'back-burner': Enders

By David Kaminski-Morrow

 

Neither the freighter nor the -900 variant of the Airbus A380 are likely to be revived in the near term, because the airframer wants to reduce its risk exposure to new projects.

 

Speaking after the delivery of Lufthansa's first A380 at Hamburg, Airbus chief executive Tom Enders described both variants as being "on the back-burner".

 

"We have to be realistic about what we can do with a given set of resources," he says. The company wants to achieve "cruise mode" on its A380 programme by stabilising production and focus on its A350 development.

 

Enders says the cargo market has been showing evidence of recovery, following a severe drop in traffic. But he points out that Airbus, with its A330-200F, has "a great new freighter" to offer the market."

 

http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/...ner-enders.html

 

It is pretty safe bet that the cargo version of the a380 won't be built and it looks like the stretch version, the a380-900, will suffer the same fate.

[Samsonite 181]

Not blaming outside contactors on this one. Trouble ahead if Boeing are to be believed.

 

Ageing workforce creates skills shortages for US manufacturers

Nonsense. There are plenty of skill workers in the U.S., but the corporations don't want to pay them a decent wage and use this argument, this ruse, to justify, in their minds, out sourcing the jobs overseas.

Edited May 20, 2010 by Samsonite

[MrMango 668]

Nonsense. There are plenty of skill workers in the U.S., but the corporations don't want to pay them a decent wage and use this argument, this ruse, to justify, in their minds, out sourcing the jobs overseas.

Total Bullox! They need no excuses to outsorce any jobs.

 

Quit drinking your union Koolaid.

[TheFiend 1,181]

Yet another design fault!!!

 

Sigh... One more time for the, obviously, extremely obtuse: That is what testing programs are for, i.e., to find the problems and fix them before the aircraft goes into service.

 

You obviously missed the sarcasm...

 

So you don't remember what I posted last June?

 

I have been saying for a while that problems would occur during commissioning, design faults would surface. Boeing Senior management seem to think problems like these don't happen, the reality is it does.

[TheFiend 1,181]

Nonsense. There are plenty of skill workers in the U.S., but the corporations don't want to pay them a decent wage and use this argument, this ruse, to justify, in their minds, out sourcing the jobs overseas.

 

There may be plenty of so called "skilled" workers, but there is a shortage of "properly" trained skilled workers.

 

In my trade there is a shortage purely because they no longer train my trade. Nowadays they tend to train people people to be multi-skilled, but they lack the depth of knowledge to do a job properly - hence companies are now willing to pay a premium price to get the correctly trained people.

[jacko 8,814]

There may be plenty of so called "skilled" workers, but there is a shortage of "properly" trained skilled workers.

 

In my trade there is a shortage purely because they no longer train my trade. Nowadays they tend to train people people to be multi-skilled, but they lack the depth of knowledge to do a job properly - hence companies are now willing to pay a premium price to get the correctly trained people.

Well, the way that 'problem' is handled is for the company to offer apprenticeships, train them straight from school. Mind you if you intend outsourcing to Haiti, not much point. Edited May 20, 2010 by jacko

[wacmedia 277]

Well, the way that 'problem' is handled is for the company to offer apprenticeships, train them straight from school. Mind you if you intend outsourcing to Haiti, not much point.

 

Hi,

 

Remember if it wasn't for Sir Frank Whittle, an Englishman, and Sikorsy a Ukranian, the Americans would still be flying around in turbo props.

[Samsonite 181]

Remember if it wasn't for Sir Frank Whittle, an Englishman, and Sikorsy a Ukranian, the Americans would still be flying around in turbo props.

Another absolutely brilliant statement, wacky.

Do you even know what powers a "turbo" prop?

[MrMango 668]

Another absolutely brilliant statement, wacky.

Do you even know what powers a "turbo" prop?

Let me guess - A Turbo!

[jacko 8,814]

Let me guess - A Turbo!

I guess you are joking but of course it is a combustion turbine (ala Mr Whittle's wonderful invention).

 

Not a regular diesel engine with a turbo(charger) like my truck.

Edited May 23, 2010 by jacko

[MrMango 668]

I guess you are joking but of course it is a combustion turbine (ala Mr Whittle's wonderful invention).

 

Not a regular diesel engine with a turbo(charger) like my truck.

Actually I was not completely joking. I confess I have never heard of Mr Whittle - Only his work.

 

On this side of the pond we call them a Jet engine.

 

A turbo is just that here - A compressor.