On the Record with
BORGE BOESKOV, PRESIDENT, BOEING BUSINESS JETS

Boeskov Looks Back on BBJ's 'Wild Ride'

Five years ago The Boeing Company and General Electric said they would bring to the marketplace a larger, more capable business airplane. On July 2, 1996, the Boeing Business Jet was born.

"We've experienced a wild ride," said Borge Boeskov, outgoing Boeing Business Jets president. "We initially saw a potential market of six airplanes per year, maybe eight if we were optimistic. We obviously underestimated the demand. It's been a most wonderful and exciting adventure."

Boeskov, who will retire in early 2002 after 35 years at Boeing, believes his BBJ assignment was the best of his career. At the Paris Air Show in June, Boeing announced that Lee Monson will replace Boeskov as president of Boeing Business Jets.

Under Boeskov's leadership, the program has experienced more success than would have been thought possible for an airplane normally designed to carry 150 people or more. The fleet of approximately 40 in-service BBJs continues to increase regularly as more airplanes leave completion centers. Through October 2000, the company had sold 71 BBJs, and now reports total sales of 80 to 85.

Though sales have slowed with the economy, the BBJ organization has gotten a handle on its teething problems, on-time completions being one of the most difficult and vexing.

"Originally we had quite a large wave of airplanes and not a lot of experience in completing those airplanes," said Boeskov.

"In this piece of the process we stumbled pretty badly. Now what has happened is that we're down to the completion centers that are capable. They know how to do it. We're over the 16g certification hurdle for seats and divans, and are now getting an airplane completed in a reasonable amount of time."

The first two BBJs completed for the NetJets fleet by Lufthansa Technik (LHT) in Germany, which received an order for multiple completion projects at last year's NBAA, were close to schedule: eight months for one and seven months for the other. LHT has guaranteed it will complete the remaining airplanes under contract in just six months each.

For Boeskov, "the next challenge is to get the airplane enough exposure so potential users of the airplane know what it is all about. We want large global companies to know this is a tool that will save their top people time."

That comment, and those made by Monson recently, signal an increased desire on the part of Boeing Business Jets to attract more corporate users then they have up to now. A significant percentage of BBJ sales have gone to what Boeskov calls "high net worth individuals," rather than those in the corporate world.

Looking ahead at the technical challenges for the BBJ, Boeskov doesn't believe much will change in the airplane itself, but electronics capabilities built into the aircraft will be able to take greater advantage of new digital and satellite communications technologies as they become available.

"Everything on the airplane is activated or could be activated with everything that is known to us in aviation: future air navigation, free flight over the Pacific-we have all the pieces on the airplane," he said.

Boeskov believes the greatest changes to come to the BBJ will not be on the flight deck but in the cabin. Boeing's Connexion, which will eventually bring high-speed Internet capabilities to passengers and flight crew, is expected to be one of several products now under development that will make a big impact for corporate users as well as those flying commercial.

And the market can take more. Boeskov believes there is a worldwide market for 18 to 30 BBJ-size corporate airplanes per year. The BBJ 3, based on Boeing's 757 narrowbody, will account for "up to one-quarter," according to Boeskov.

-Barry Rosenberg