True. But NW's recent purchases seem to be Airbii - the A330 and A319/A320. Though I was chatting with the head of NW's DC-10 fleet at SEA the other day, and he spoke very highly of the 777. So perhaps NW might replace their 747-200s with 777s. I always figured they'd go A340s, but the 777 is the better plane all the way around.

He also said they were looking at the 7E7, but noted they were very happy with the A330. So I don't know if the A330 is a "short-term solution" for DC-10-30s that just aren't up to service spec anymore until the 7E7 launches, or if they might wait to see what EADS does with the A330 in response.

And this morning's Seattle Times noted that Boeing is working hard to secure a "massive" (50-100 plane) order from China so the plane will be ready for the Beijin Summer Games in 2008.