ABB has publicly stated that they are not interested in A350ULR.
The 77L will be more profitable on the Auckland route than the 359. On a typical day the AKL-DOH route is approx. 8600 air nm. The 77L can lift 259 pax and approx 8 tonne of freight. In comparison the 359 would have to block 43 seats and only carry 230 pax without freight. They have a similar payload/fuel/distance rate at 8600 nm. Freight is important for effectively now an island nation with appetite for chilled produce from NZ. ABB has said that the 77L is the only aircraft capable for AKL. Looking to the future the 359ULR would crawl back 3 tonne or 29 pax but one long route alone doesn't justify a small QR sub-fleet. The 35K might get you another 2 tonne for a 75 % LF. The ordered 778 is a long-distance monster with 1200 more nm range but you pay for this with higher specific fuel consumption hauling more volume.
I predict for the foreseeable future the 77L will stay on the AKL route.
Last edited by wairakei15; Jun 28, 2018 at 12:07 am