The article listed above states that Swiss International Airlines is taking a look at the Boeing 747-8I as a potential replacement for its fleet of Airbus A340-300s. They would be following the footsteps of their parent company Lufthansa, the launch customer of the B748I. But before they decided upon the B748, they were also taking a look at the Boeing 777 and Airbus A350.
In my opinion, I think the Boeing 777 would be fit Swiss, unsure whether they’d order the Boeing 777-200LR or -300ER. They would be adding 100-150 more passengers on their flights. The Airbus A350 wouldn’t make a difference or be able to fit more passengers as the Boeing 777 would, but it would range further. The Boeing 747-8I wouldn’t be a good idea to me, but it would certainly be a better choice than the Airbus A380.
Also, if they were to look at the Boeing 787, they would be fitting 50-100 passengers, which would be a decent amount but not as much as the Boeing 777. But sadly, they aren’t interested.
My question is which of these three would be fit for Swiss International? If they were to order the Boeing 777 or Airbus A350, which variant would they choose? And last why didn’t Swiss ever consider the Boeing 787 before?
I agree with you and mduell that B777 is would be the best choice at this time. Although it would be cool to see the B748 with Swiss, it would not be practical because the 748 is not made for the routes Swiss uses the A340 on, it is simply to big. The B772/LR would be best for Swiss, IMHO, as it is efficient and would probably more profitable than a B773.
I think that Delta and Air India (airlines that have operated both) disagree with that as both have either kept the LR to routes where it is absolutely necessary (DL) and tried to get rid of theirs (AI).
LR and ER have the same seating capacity and an ER wouldn’t be weight restricted on a 5900 mile flight like Swiss’ longest are (especially with Swiss’ fairly premium-heavy configurations), so there’s no real revenue advantage for the LR over the ER for them either.
