BOEING 797
It can comfortably fly 10,000 Miles
at Mach 0.88 or 654 mph
with 1000 passengers on board!
It can comfortably fly 10,000 Miles
at Mach 0.88 or 654 mph
with 1000 passengers on board!
Rumor has it...
"The BOEING 797....
Boeing is preparing this 1000 passenger Jet Liner that could reshape the Air Travel Industry. Its radical "Blended Wing & Fuselage" design has been developed by Boeing in cooperation with NASA Langley Research Centre. The mammoth aircraft will have a wing span of 265 feet compared to 211 feet of its 747, and its been designed to fit within the newly created Air Terminals for the 555 seat Airbus A380, which is 262 feet wide.
The new 797 is Boeing's direct response to the Airbus A380, which has racked up orders for 159 already. Boeing decided to kill its 747X Stretched Super Jumbo in 2003 after little interest was shown for it by Airline Companies, but continued to develop its "Ultimate Airbus Crusher", the 797 at its Phantom Works Research Facility in Long Beach, California.
The Airbus A380 had been in the works since 1999 and has accumulated $13 Billion in development costs, which gives Boeing a huge advantage. More so because Airbus is thus committed to the older style tubular structure for their aircraft for decades to come.
There are several big advantages in the "Blended Wing & Fuselage"
design, the most important being the ‘Lift to Drag’ ratio which is expected to
increase by an amazing 50%, resulting in an overall weight reduction of the
aircraft by 25%, making it an estimated 33% more fuel efficient than the A380,
and thus making the Airbus's $13 Billion Dollar investment look pretty shaky.
"High Airframe Rigidity" is another key factor in the "Blended Wing & Fuselage" technology. It reduces turbulence and creates less stress on the airframe which adds to fuel efficiency, giving the 797 a tremendous 10,000 Mile range with 1,000 passengers on board cruising comfortably at Mach 0.88 or 654 MPH, which gives it another advantage over the tube-and-wing designed A380's 570 MPH.
The exact date for introduction of the 797 is as yet
unclear, but the battle lines are clearly drawn in the high-stakes war for
future civilian aircraft supremacy."
What do you think? Is it possible? Could this be the future? Would you fly on this plane if it came to being?
Enjoy the Journey!
XOX Karlene
Hi, Karlene!
ReplyDeleteThose pictures have been around. They're p'shopped views of the X-48 unmanned technology demonstrator...which is back in the news, having resumed flight tests. The wiki' article on the X-48 is here.
Boeing apparently did toy with the idea of a blended wing airliner and went so far as to construct a cabin mockup...which passengers hated. Nobody wanted to sit forty feet away from the nearest window. So they dropped it (except as a possible military tanker/cargo configuration).
Fun to think about, tho'.
Best,
Frank
Wow... that's interesting. I did not know there actually had been a test. First glance I thought there performance would be an issue and this had to be a joke.
DeleteAnd then the issue about the seats? The comment below was written about the seats prior to yours posting.
Thank you for the comment and the great article too!
April 2013 flight tests of the X48C were completed. This is an ongoing project.
DeleteAwesome!
DeleteI don't want to fly IN this thing. It's all middle seats with no outside view! How will I know if the pilots are doing their thing properly? Oh, I get it, no pilots.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't fly in this either. And the funny thing is, you are not alone on the seat issue.
DeleteYou know... it's kind of fun to imagine. Maybe a story will be made about this. Check out the article that Frank posted. Thanks for your comment.
Yes, I recognized the concept as something I've seen before. The B2 used the same idea, and is unstable. You can't build a stable flying wing, so certification would be a concern, and if the artificial flight stability system quits, you eject. I'd like to see THAT with 1,000 passengers....
DeleteThe concept looks really impressive, same thing with the figures (costs, fuel consumption, speed, etc.). However I wonder how accepted would be this aircraft in the industry. I mean, airports would have to be redesigned. Let's imagine eight or ten "797s" parked while boarding/unboarding passengers, airports facilities would have to be different than they're now.
ReplyDeleteNow, if you ask me if I would fly on it, my answer is YES, I would (Jeez!, I love planes).
Greetings :)
Thanks Mario! Okay... they will for sure have a passenger. You know, all of us who say we never would...probably would.
DeleteYes... redesigning everything would be a huge impact. They actually had to do that, on a smaller scale, for the A380. Such an interesting and fun world we live.
Keep loving planes! And thank you for your comment!
That's happened before, not just for the A380. I'm old enough to remember when the same concerns were expressed over the B747-100. Airports just got bigger.
DeleteYes... so true. And then came the 380. How big will these airports eventually get? Hopefully they have room to grow. :)
DeleteI sure hope that when and if Boeing finally does build its 1,000 seater plane, it is more creative in the naming department.
ReplyDeleteMay be call it the Boeing 1000.
And hopefully Airbus will still be around too ... you know, just for the sake of competition ... to keep the folks honest.
Indeed, I look forward to a third major player in the civil aviation space - may be building 100 seater or 200 seater planes.
Yes, competition is good and essential. Keeps everyone honest and always doing their best. And honestly... your name is the best name. I like it.
DeleteThanks for your comment!
I think the big downside I see to this design is a severe lack of window seats! Maybe most people don't care but I hate getting stuck in the middle where I can't see outside even a bit...
ReplyDeleteYes. So true. Looks like they have a lot of aisles though. I'm wondering... how can you evacuate 1000 people in the required time? Could be a challenge.
Deleteuse the viedo tv in front of you with the right cameras you would see more then you do now
DeleteThe 797 will fit in the same space as the A-380, so no new redesigning.
ReplyDeleteOh... now there is a plus. So it will fit. Okay... there you have it. Maybe the runways weren't just expanded for the Airbus after all.
Delete---Giving Boeing an advantage---
DeleteIt is fiction now... I heard the same thing as the top comments are saying. But here is my idea: Airbus has a plan to make a completely new aircraft with no pilots and with a special transparent fuselage made out of special resin. So, let's make it bigger and transparent! :D
ReplyDeleteOh... and now we're back to the question... would we fly without pilots? We all say never, but who knows. You are at the beginning of the next generation... what an exciting place to be.
DeleteFlying without pilots would be unfair. Actually, pretty dangerous. Machines don't think, they do what they are programmed to do. Would they know what to do when the aircraft is stalling? Okay, a better question: would they know what to do what a well trained pilot knows what to do? That is the question. However, you are right, who knows! But unmanned airplanes will take many many years to be developed. Wow, what a subject! So complex, I can't find an answer! There's too many things to be considered! Fantastic question, Karlene!
DeleteInteresting to know that Boeing decided to kill the notion of an A380 style double deck to tail to compete with Airbus. The model above is awesome from the outside, however, I agree with the above comments: I would not want to be seated away from a window seat. I'd rather not fly to begin with if I can not see what is outside of the aircraft - especially if we declare an emergency. (Yes, I am a picky avgeek.) And yes, there better be pilots inside as the notion of planes flying themselves, well, let's just say, that idea doesn't fly with me to well... Cheers, -J
ReplyDeleteMost of us Avgeeks are picky. I'm thinking I'd be very claustrophobic to be inside this plane. I need windows too! And Pilots. So demanding aren't we?
DeleteI love the background city scene in the first photo. It looks like it's out of the Jetsons.
ReplyDeleteIt does look like the Jetsons. And before we know it...we'll all be living there.
DeletePassengers on the centreline would be disadvantaged by seating that is so far away from windows, natural light. But, the advances of in flight entertainment systems can nearly clean this up. However, those at the windows would literally have to be aerobatic types, sustain the huge movements, inertia of a simple roll - movements that would make loads of people quite sick.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I'm now thinking no sickness. No disadvantage. They should take all the windows out. They could fill the cabin with lizard lights. Great idea.
DeleteLizard lights, lol. I think because you're seated so far away from the centre of the aircraft, the sensation is of a much larger movement when the aircraft makes a very slight movement, windows, of course wouldn't matter to those few seated near them in such a case. Would a 45 degree roll produce a stomach churning vertical movement in excess of 20 metres? They shouldn't take the windows out so much as looking into flying the aircraft in such a way as to minimise discomfort of those passengers. I think air sickness would be a much bigger problem than lack of windows in such an aircraft.
DeleteI'm thinking... it's just too big. Why would 1000 people ever want to go to the same place anyway? But... on another note. We shouldn't be rolling 45 degrees either. lol.
DeleteNever happen. It's too radical and both airline manufacturers and the airlines themselves are too conservative for this kind of radical re-design.
ReplyDeleteExcellent point. Unless it made them money, then conservatism goes out the window. :)
DeleteI think fewer people care about windows than you may realise... The fact is, to the average passenger, once you're at cruising altitute, there isn't much to see anyway. Most folks are looking at the TV screens, not out the windows... That said, this cabin could feel like a cozy movie theatre, and if the screen was big enough, people would be fighting for those middle seats...
ReplyDeleteWhy be so resistant to change folks? That attitude gets us no where...
Ahhh... Change is a good thing. But put 1000 people on a plane for that length of time, add alcohol, fatigue, dehydration... windows or not, this is a recipe for disaster.
DeleteBut, if they found it feasible, and could make them money, I'm sure they would do it. Never say never.
How large an airplane can be is limied by the lift to weight ratio (which decreases with size). Even at 25% weight reduction, will the blended wing/fuselage airplane stay in the air with 1000 passengers?
ReplyDeleteIf so, this would be a mamoth accomplishment, and solving whatever problms with windows, fatigue, dehydration, and docking space are trivial by comparison. Surely such an airplane would offer a magnificent flying experience, and I for one would not hesitate to go...
Yes, it would be monumental. But even so they did the monumental... would people want to fly on it? That's the question. Kind of like flying without your pilots. Would you?
DeleteThanks for the great comment~
The Airlines are sure to want these especially for the amount of seats. Passengers usually dont get a choice - window seat or not. Hopefully we see something like this from Airbus because it seems alot more efficient than the current design.
ReplyDelete---Also, in an emergency how are they going to get 1000 people out???---
I don't think they would get them out. But never say never. Planes like this are a non-revers dream. Thanks for your comment!
DeleteThis plane is AWESOME!!! I think Boeing should make this plane float in water so no matter how many times it will make an emergency landing on the water, it won't sink.
ReplyDeleteYes... then it can be a cruise ship too! :)
DeleteYou need to be able to evacuate the entire aircraft within 90 seconds. With few windows (and doors) and 1000 passengers, it would be extremely tough to evacuate those in the middle-back of the plane.
ReplyDeleteYes you do. They would have their work cut out for them for sure.
DeletePassenger aircraft have changed very little in the past 50-70 years ... same basic fuselage, wings and engines (albeit advancements in avionics, radar and weather forecasting). Richard Branson of Virgin Airlines has shown different designs for high altitude flights, not high volume passenger loads such as the A380. If we think ahead for the next 100 years, we'll probably have developed point-to-point matter transport centers (or stepping discs) and then high passenger load aircraft become superfluous.
ReplyDeleteThat's an interesting comment. I'm thinking the 707 in 1962, is vastly different than the 787 of today. The only similarities is they have two wings, a fuselage, a tail, and fly.
DeleteLooks like an awesome design! The only drawback is the extremely-limited number of window seats for this design. Myself like most other flyers love having a window seat and being able to stare outside while the plane is in flight to see what's below. It's not ideal as a passenger jetliner design, but this would be superb for a future design for a cargo jetliner as there would be LOTS of room for a large number of cargo pallets (at least twice as much as an A380F) and cargo pallets don't need window seats either!
ReplyDeleteIt does! But I'm thinking that I want the aisle. Only because if we have to evacuate... I'm out of there. lol. You're right...excellent freighter for sure. Thanks for your comment!
DeleteHere's one for you ... food for thought: The 797 not as a BWB but as a replacement for the 737 series. I've played around on the sim with a design, looks all the world like the 787 but is the size of the 734/738. Weighs less than the 757 but in the 3,800 - 4,200 nm range. It keeps the standard 6-abreast single isle but the round design like the 787 means slightly wider seats in coach and of course the bigger windows. Would there be any takers for that? (Bag the 737MAX and go with the 787 shape/design/raked wing-thing.)
ReplyDeleteI am liking the way you think! Wider seats. More room. Bigger windows and looks like the 787. This is my plane!! And passengers would love it. Thanks for the great idea!
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