Originally Posted by
The Lev
Advantages of the A350-1000 vs 77X:
- Longer range
- Comparable operating economics with a lower total seat count
- Might be hard filling the 77X on many routes - few of AC's routes are slot constrained
- Greater passenger comfort (seat and/or aisle width)
- 3-3-3 configuration versus 3-4-3 means 1/3 of seats are less desirable middle seats versus 40%
- I think the only area where the 77X is likely to win out is in freight hauling capacity
At the end of day it will likely come down to who offers the best deal, but at current fuel prices there is no mad rush to get rid of the 77W.
The A350-1000 seats 350-410 pax (per Airbus) and a range of ~9000NM. The 777-8 is projected to have a seating capacity of 395 pax (again per Boeing) and a range of ~8745 NM. So seating wise the two aircraft are very similar, the 350 ekes out a few hundred more NM.
We're not talking about dozens of extra seats on the 777X compared to the 350 and remember the aircraft these would be replacing in the fleet are the 300-450 seat 777 aircraft. And the 787 fleet already has the 255-322 seats covered and can hit all but the airline's most distant destinations.