Just saw this on the newswires. Not sure if it has been posted already. Includes launch info for passenger version as well.

Aaron G.

Boeing Launches New 747-8 Family
Tuesday November 15, 2:02 am ET
-- Cargolux and Nippon Cargo to buy up to 34 aircraft
-- 787 technologies to increase passenger and freighter capabilities, improve fuel efficiency, reduce noise and emissions, provide unmatched operating economics

SEATTLE, Nov. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA - News) today officially launched the new Boeing 747-8 program, which includes the 747-8 Intercontinental passenger airplane and the 747-8 Freighter airplane.

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Cargolux, based in Luxembourg, has ordered 10 747-8 Freighters and will take delivery of the first 747-8F in third-quarter 2009. It also holds purchase rights for 10 additional airplanes. Cargolux currently operates an all-Boeing fleet of 13 747-400 freighters.

Nippon Cargo Airlines, based in Japan, has ordered eight 747-8 Freighters and will receive its first airplane in fourth-quarter 2009. The airline also acquired options for six additional airplanes. Nippon Cargo currently operates 13 747 freighters and has six more 747-400Fs on order.

Firm orders from the two launch customers are valued at approximately $5 billion at list prices.

"We are thrilled to have Cargolux and Nippon Cargo choose the new 747-8 and become the launch customers for this next generation of the proud and valuable 747 airplane family," said Alan Mulally, president and chief executive officer, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "The 747-8 will use the technologies of the 787 Dreamliner to significantly increase the passenger and freighter capabilities of the 747 and offer greater fuel efficiency, improved operating economics, and be more friendly to the environment with reduced noise and emissions."

Both versions of the new 747 will feature GE's 787-technology GEnx engines, meet Stage 4 and QC2 noise requirements, have reduced emissions, offer lower trip costs and have an upgraded flight deck and an improved wing.

"The 747-8 Freighter will be very important in allowing Nippon Cargo to take advantage of the high expected cargo market growth in Asia," said Takuro Uchiyama, president and CEO, Nippon Cargo Airlines. "In addition, the 747-8 Freighter will be the world's most efficient cargo airplane, which is a key attribute with today's high cost of fuel."

Ulrich Ogiermann, president and CEO, Cargolux Airlines, said, "The Boeing 747-400 Freighter has been a cornerstone of our success, and I have high expectations that the 747-8 Freighter will build on that success and expand our capabilities worldwide. The increased payload capacity and much improved efficiency will allow us to continue our expansion and maximize our profitability. Equally important to us and the communities where we operate is the new standard the 747-8 Freighter will set in noise reduction."

The 747-8 Intercontinental passenger airplane will be stretched 3.6 m (11.7 ft) compared to the 747-400 to accommodate 34 additional seats in a typical three-class configuration. The only jetliner in the 400- to 500-seat category, it will have a range of 14,815 km (8,000 nmi) and will feature the new Boeing Signature Interior.

The Intercontinental will be quieter, produce fewer emissions, and achieve better fuel economy than any competing jetliner. It will offer 21 percent more lower-hold revenue cargo volume than the 747-400 and cost about 8 percent less per seat mile to operate. Compared to the A380, it will offer 22 percent lower trip costs.

The 747-8 Freighter will be 5.6 m (18.3 ft) longer than the 747-400 freighter. With a total payload capacity of 140 metric tonnes (154 tons), including tare weight, the 747-8F provides 16 percent more cargo revenue volume than the -400. The additional 117m(3) (4,124 ft(3)) from the longer fuselage offers space for four additional main-deck pallets, two additional lower-hold pallets and two additional lower-hold containers. Cargo can be loaded and unloaded on the 747-8F using both the nose and side doors for maximum speed and efficiency.

Compared to the A380, the 747-8F will offer 20 percent lower trip costs. In addition, the 747-8F will maintain the operational flexibility of today's 747 freighters, with good profit potential at less-than-full loads.

The 747-8 Freighter complements the existing 747-400 freighter family, which is the air-cargo industry's standard. Both models accommodate 3.1-meter (10-foot) high pallets, providing operators with maximum flexibility.

The 747-8 also fits easily in today's aviation infrastructure, flying into more than 210 airports worldwide without additional, expensive infrastructure changes required.

The 747 freighter family currently constitutes more than half of the world's total freighter capacity. Boeing freighters of all models comprise more than 90 percent of the total worldwide freighter lift.

Boeing forecasts the need for about 900 airplanes -- passengers and freighters -- in the 400-plus-seat segment over the next 20 years. Boeing also forecasts that large widebody freighters (65 metric tons and above in capacity) will comprise 34 percent of the freighter market by 2024.

It's on their site now. Heckuva time to announce it.

Quoting 707lvr (Reply 1): It's on their site now. Heckuva time to announce it.

Yeah, isn't it like 11pm in Seattle? I'm in Paris and I just got up.

Aaron G.

Just saw it too. Great friggin news! I've been waiting for six months now!

iwok

Wow. That is really something. Congrats to Boeing and the aviation industry and enthusiasts. Here's to a bunch of threads picking that poor plane and it's operators apart...   

Yep, its official.



http://747.newairplane.com/

-iwok

Wonderful news! Congratulations Boeing!   


Rgds

SA7700

Great news, I hope the 747-800 Family will become many order in the near future.
When the first pax airline will order this aircraft?
Manuel

Quoting Iwok (Reply 3):

I've been waiting 6 years! Way to go Boeing!

Congrats to Boeing and the cargo airlines buying the 747-8. Now to see which commercial airlines will jump and buy the passenger version, maybe ANA, JAL, UA....

Once again way to go Boeing.   

There must be some good reason for the bizarre timing, but I'll bet the local media is ticked off. Our papers will get scooped by the whole world on this one. Television doesn't really matter since Seattle TV doesn't pay much attention to Boeing, but I'm sure the papers had in-depth stories ready to go.

I like this line from the Press Release:

"The 747-8 also fits easily in today's aviation infrastructure, flying into more than 210 airports worldwide without additional, expensive infrastructure changes required."

Ouch.

http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2005/q4/nr_051114h.html

Travis

Wow! I'm already looking forward to flying in this plane.

Great to see that Boeing has finally realized that there is a market for two airplanes in the VLA sector!  

I hope we will see many orders for pax versions of A380s and B748s in the future. I can't wait to fly them.

Quoting Trvlr (Reply 2): Yeah, isn't it like 11pm in Seattle? I'm in Paris and I just got up.

And I'll bet you awoke to 2 headlines: "A380 wake turb far greater than expected" and "Boeing officially launches 747-8"  

By the way, with the A380 showing signs of not being willing to cooperate with the wake turbulence, does anobody think/guess whether the 748 will have the same problems?

Bad timing in the aviation industry? Never   I'm guessing that this product is being aimed at people who will wake up this morning (as I am about to go to sleep).

What the media will do it compare and contrast as to why this 747 has an 800 in it and conclude in their minds: direct competitor to A388.

Looking back, I was wishing Boeing made 745x and 746x when they started them more than 10 years ago; this satisfies that wish in a way.

I think however, if this plane sells beyond anything expected, A380's market also grows but at a slower pace because of its size. Airbus is somewhat to blame for the creation of 748 by not making a A387, i.e. opening a niche in the first place. 

Still, I find it odd why Boeing chose to pursue another 747; sales of which have been dropping over the years and they claim the future is in aircraft like their 787. In fact, I see an overlap in the use for both planes, so why waste the money?

Quoting Lehpron (Reply 16): Still, I find it odd why Boeing chose to pursue another 747; sales of which have been dropping over the years and they claim the future is in aircraft like their 787. In fact, I see an overlap in the use for both planes, so why waste the money?

Well, the freighter orders are one reason. The 787 isn't competing in that space.

Quoting RedChili (Reply 15): does anobody think/guess whether the 748 will have the same problems?

No, it will not have greater wake than a regular 744. Why? Not much heavier than 744, and more effective winglets - raked wingtips. A388 on the other hand, has winglets that does not reduce induced drag by very much. Wingtip vortices, or wake turbulence, is a byproduct of lift and spillage.

Quoting RedChili (Reply 15): By the way, with the A380 showing signs of not being willing to cooperate with the wake turbulence, does anobody think/guess whether the 748 will have the same problems?

My guess is no. Airbus started the wing of the A380 from scratch, with no real "in the field" data to go by, just wind tunnel testing. As extensive as that can be, it still isn't the real world. Boeing on the other hand already has a wing for a plane of that size and profile, thus they already have some field data with which to analyze and improve upon.

Quoting DLKAPA (Reply 19): Boeing on the other hand already has a wing for a plane of that size and profile, thus they already have some field data with which to analyze and improve upon.

Not to mention the span has been increased by 13 feet and they are using more advanced wingtip devices on the 748 compared to the 744. The wake would hopefully be roughly the same, if not actually slightly less on the 748 vs. the 744.

This was unexpected, to say the least.
This must be the minimum number of committments before such a launch for such a large aircraft. Let see if JL will order some, as they have a requirement to phase out its 747 classic fleet.

NH will not be going for the 747-8 because they have 10 773ER on order.

Hopefully, CX and other 744 operators will follow suit.

I wonder if the entire 747 airframe will be revolutionized rather a simple re-engine and fuselage stretch. Also with a wider diameter fan engine being used, is the main landing gear going to be slightly stretched? Is the fuselage going to be made of composite like the 787?
I and everybody else will definitely be interested in the new technologies being applied from the 787 R&D.

Congratulations to Boeing.

Hopefully w'll see 747's around for another 35 years because of this.

Hopefully some passenger announcements soon.

Will the chevrons we see at the ANC aircraft also feature the other Gen-X powered aircraft?

No winglets, no 777-300Er like wing stretch but something inbetween it seems.

Great news.Nice Link.
regds
MEL

This has to be the first time that an aircraft is launched with only orders for freighters. Not a very good timing, adding a customer for the passenger version would have been much more impressive. Perhaps this hints that no real negotations are going on at the moment and near future for the passenger version. Nevertheless, always good to hear new aircraft are being offered, it makes aviation so much more interesting.

Wonderful. I can´t say more. This is the most anticipated lauch since the A380 for me.

Absolutely AWESOME!!! I knew they could do it...

Quoting Manni (Reply 25): This has to be the first time that an aircraft is launched with only orders for freighters. Not a very good timing, adding a customer for the passenger version would have been much more impressive. Perhaps this hints that no real negotations are going on at the moment and near future for the passenger version. Nevertheless, always good to hear new aircraft are being offered, it makes aviation so much more interesting.

Isn't it better that Boeing launch the program as they said they would if they received two orders from reputable airlines, regardless of whether they are passenger or cargo. Boeing is doing what they said they would.

Anyway, considering the absolute crappy timing of that "747Adv won't launch" thread, and given the presence of a few threads hinting at 747Adv passenger airline orders, perhaps you should avoid saying things like this isn't good timing, lest you be embarassed by soon to come passenger airline orders.

Good news, although I wonder why they decided to stretch the pax version by 3.6m and the freight version by 5.6m. Why the difference? anyone know?


raggi

Quoting Atmx2000 (Reply 28): Anyway, considering the absolute crappy timing of that "747Adv won't launch" thread, and given the presence of a few threads hinting at 747Adv passenger airline orders, perhaps you should avoid saying things like this isn't good timing, lest you be embarassed by soon to come passenger airline orders.

Spare yourself, trying to give me advice. I've taken note of the situation now, and the information that is known to the general public. What happens tomorrow or even in an hours time is not known now, and I wont take the blame for not knowing that, let alone be embarrased.

Look folks, I've had a lot of beers tonight, but is this really happening? I love Boeing and I love the 747, but is this really going to work? How many gigantic aircraft do we really need? I hope I'm wrong, but...

Quoting Manni (Reply 25): This has to be the first time that an aircraft is launched with only orders for freighters. Not a very good timing, adding a customer for the passenger version would have been much more impressive. Perhaps this hints that no real negotations are going on at the moment and near future for the passenger version. Nevertheless, always good to hear new aircraft are being offered, it makes aviation so much more interesting.

You and A380900 should get together and order some champagne since you both seem to be celebrating the demise of an aircraft launched a few hours ago. Talk about not giving a market time to develop...

Quoting Atmx2000 (Reply 28): Isn't it better that Boeing launch the program as they said they would if they received two orders from reputable airlines, regardless of whether they are passenger or cargo. Boeing is doing what they said they would.

Not for some people. Boeing made a statement and stood by it. Two launch customers means a launch.

Quoting Atmx2000 (Reply 28): Anyway, considering the absolute crappy timing of that "747Adv won't launch" thread, and given the presence of a few threads hinting at 747Adv passenger airline orders, perhaps you should avoid saying things like this isn't good timing, lest you be embarassed by soon to come passenger airline orders.

Yeah, there's been strong hints from people who give winks and nods, as if they know something they can't mention, including someone close in with NZ. And of course you have other big carriers who operate a lot of 744s who have pending decisions.

We should of course assume NONE of them are looking at the 747-8I seriously, because Manni and A380900 say it's DOA.

And breakeven on the 748 isn't going to be 250-400 airframes, either. It doesn't need 20 years and a favorable market forecast to succeed.

What about the possibility of Air New Zealand Ordering this aircraft? I would have thought this would have suited them down to the Ground!(pardon the pun!)
Perhaps this is why there were only a couple more orders for 787?
Stuarts8

Boeing and Airbus both say they want the A380 and 7478 to work together not against, so maybe we can hope to see both aircraft in our skys with lots of different airlines.

Huh. I'm surprised. But happy. Congrats to Boeing and the Queen of the Skies!

great news, worth the wait.

I could not have not started the day better. At last the good old B747 has been given another breath of life into it. This is indeed a great day for all aviation enthusiasts.


CONGRATULATIONS TO BOEING AND THE OLD QUEEN 747


Regards,
Wings

Quoting Ikramerica (Reply 32): You and A380900 should get together and order some champagne since you both seem to be celebrating the demise of an aircraft launched a few hours ago. Talk about not giving a market time to develop...

They are just projecting, as our Belgian and French friends must be despondent about the apparent wake turbulence problems of the A380. I wonder what impact it is going to have on an A389 launch.

Quoting WINGS (Reply 37): I could not have not started the day better. At last the good old B747 has been given another breath of life into it. This is indeed a great day for all aviation enthusiasts.

And from EIS to EIS, it will only have taken 39 years or so to finally get a 747 stretch!  

Quoting Ikramerica (Reply 32): Quoting Manni (Reply 25): This has to be the first time that an aircraft is launched with only orders for freighters. Not a very good timing, adding a customer for the passenger version would have been much more impressive. Perhaps this hints that no real negotations are going on at the moment and near future for the passenger version. Nevertheless, always good to hear new aircraft are being offered, it makes aviation so much more interesting. You and A380900 should get together and order some champagne since you both seem to be celebrating the demise of an aircraft launched a few hours ago. Talk about not giving a market time to develop...

Ikramerica,

You clearly are reading a lot more in my post than I've been writing.
Answer the next 2 questions for yourself.
1. Did Boeing launch the 748 with a customer for the passenger version?
2. Would it have been a more spectacular/ impressive launch if they did?

As for the demise of the 748, I very much doubt it, inclusive options there are already more 748 asked for than there were ever 767-400 build, so they'l go ahead, dont worry.

Quoting Ikramerica (Reply 32): Not for some people. Boeing made a statement and stood by it. Two launch customers means a launch.

FWIW Baseler did state that he would "like" to see a pax customer for launch, but was honest enough to say it was unlikely.

Congratulations to Boeing. This plane will be a commercial success even only as a Freighter. Pax orders will just make it better.
A

Wow... what a turn of events the last 24 months have brought. Over 40 orders this year for the 747, in addition to the 300 plus total for the 787.

You simply had to know it was going to happen, because Leahy wasn't running around calling it a paper airplane.

Any bets on who gets to 250 first? It took less then 2 years for the 787 to pass the A330-200 in orders. Maybe Emirates will hedge their bets, and buy a couple dozen 747s and convert a couple dozen A380s to A350s.

Great news for Boeing.

Cheers

Yes! That was the news I was really waiting for...
Thanks Boeing, long life the 747!
This made my day! yep!!      

Let's just hope that Air NZ will order some next month..

Wow! Great news, and she is a sleek beauty too.

Quoting Manni (Reply 25): This has to be the first time that an aircraft is launched with only orders for freighters. Not a very good timing, adding a customer for the passenger version would have been much more impressive.

You can't predict that. Boeing is probably going on the mentality that customers with large 747-400 fleets will upgrade to the 748 by the time it's built. By then, the oldest 744s will be between 10-20 years old. Airlines such as BA, SA)">UA, QF, NH, JL, SA, and AF to say a few will probably be in the runnings for the 748, since they all have large 744 fleets.

Quoting WINGS (Reply 37): CONGRATULATIONS TO BOEING AND THE OLD QUEEN 747

Perhaps Queen Mother would be more tactful.  

Quoting UA772IAD (Reply 45): You can't predict that.

I dont need to predict that. It already is a fact.   The 748 was launched without a customer for the pax version.

What is the SkyLoft they mentioned on their site? It says it "gives airlines the option to add additional main-deck seats".

Quoting Manni (Reply 47): The 748 was launched without a customer for the pax version.

Even Boeing officially admits that pax version will not sell in huge numbers. For a passenger airlines the costs advantages of the A380 are to obvious. 748 is supposed to have only 6% cost savings over 744 which is not enough. But I'm sure the cargo version will be very successful and will keep nice shape of 747 flying for many years.