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Four Boeing Business Jets Operating in Asia-Pacific
Region
Four Boeing Business Jets will be operating in the Asia-Pacific
region by the end of this summer, it was learned here at Asian Aerospace.
The MAS (Malaysia Airlines System) aircraft will soon be joined
in the fleet by two BBJs currently under completion for the Australian
Air Force, and in the next several months by another for an unnamed
customer in Korea.
The BBJ on show here is not Boeing's usual demonstrator but a
NetJets airplane, outfitted with a standard NetJets interior. The
aircraft is now owned by Boeing and will not be joining the NetJets
fractional ownership program, having been diverted back to Boeing
by a complex series of wheels and deals involving another customer
requesting accelerated delivery. "Right now we own the airplane,"
a Boeing Business Jets spokesman said.
Boeing now has declared sales of 83 BBJs, with 43 in service.
On the BBJ 2 front, Boeing delivered four "green" airframes
in 2001, and signed up its first European customer-Multiflight Ltd.,
a UK-based charter company.
Multiflight will use the BBJ 2 as a long-range, luxury charter
airplane with two lounges, a dining area, an exercise area, two
bathrooms with showers, a master bedroom with private office, and
a large galley. One of the lounges will convert into a wide-screen
theater with surround sound. Each of the 19 seats will have phone,
fax and Internet connections.
The BBJ 2, which is under completion by Lufthansa Technik, will
be based at Leeds/Bradford International Airport where the company
has a sales and maintenance base and also offers flight training
on helicopters and fixed wing aircraft.
Through 2001, cumulative "green" deliveries for the
BBJ stood at 67.
Other pertinent details:
- Eight green deliveries in 1998.
- 29 green deliveries in 1999.
- 14 green deliveries in 2000.
- 16 green deliveries in 2001 (of which five were BBJ 2s) of
which six were for U.S. registry and 10 international.
- Fleet hours stand at 24,100, and fleet cycles at 10,700.
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