=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2002/11/14/f= inancial0142EST0005.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, November 14, 2002 (AP) Boeing rolls out longer-range 777 jet HELEN JUNG, AP Business Writer (11-14) 22:42 PST EVERETT, Wash. (AP) -- In a challenge to the range of its chief rival, Boeing has introduced its newest long-haul jet, the 777-300ER, before a crowd of thousands of Boeing employees, suppliers and airline customers. The twin-aisle jet, under development for three years, can travel up to 8,330 miles -- nearly 1,500 miles farther than 777-300s. An additional 13 feet of wing span and raked wingtips help reduce the distance the jet needs for takeoff, reducing its fuel consumption. Boeing also increased fuel efficiency and offers the option of additional fuel tanks. Its engines, built by General Electric Aircraft Engines, are the largest in the world -- bigger than the fuselage of a 737 jet. "It's absolutely the coolest airplane in the world," Alan Mulally, chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said at the plane's Thursday debut. The 777-300ER, or Extended Range, is designed to compete against Airbus's A-340 models. Those currently hold the title for the longest-range commercial jumbo jets, flying more than 8,600 miles. Boeing's 777 series remains one of its most popular jet offerings, even = as the company has had to defer deliveries as airlines struggle with billions of dollars in losses and a sluggish economy. Chicago-based Boeing already has 49 orders for the 777-300ER from seven customers -- including Air France, All Nippon Airways and Pakistan International Airlines. The extended-range model is the fourth of five planned versions of the 777, which first came out in 1995. The company is continuing work on the 777-200LR, or Longer Range, but delayed development due to the industry downturn that deepened after the terrorist attacks of Sept, 11, 2001. The extended-range jet also offers a newly designed interior which uses overhead space for crew quarters, creating room for more passenger seats. The jet will carry 365 passengers in a standard three-class seating configuration. The jet also gave Boeing a chance to come up with a new paint design, or livery. With 55-foot-wide maps of the world tattooed onto the front sides of the plane, and blue and red swooping lines wrapping the underbelly, the design creates a sense of motion, said Gary Wicks, 777 marketing manager. The 777-300ER still faces a 12-month battery of tests, with its first flight slated for late January or mid-February. The first delivery is scheduled for April 2004, to leasing company International Lease Finance Corp. and its customer, Air France. The concept of a longer-range jet is a solid idea, though the airline industry needs to recover more before it will fully take off in the market, said Richard Aboulafia, with aviation consulting firm Teal Group of Fairfax, Va. "It's going to come in dribs and drabs as the carriers recover -- or outperform everybody else," he said. On the Net: www.boeing.com =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2002 AP