The Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) continues to meet market demand for an airplane
that can fly passengers more than 6,000 nautical miles (11,100 kilometers) in a
comfortable, spacious cabin. Fifty Boeing Business Jets now are fully completed
and in-service, including the first BBJ in Latin America. The fleet has generated
more than 31,400 flight hours to date and 13,800 flights, with 99.9 percent
reliability and no major technical issues reported.
"We continue to see a wide range of applications for the BBJ," said Lee Monson,
president of Boeing Business Jets, at the second annual European Business
Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva. "The versatility of the
airplane allows owners to create a unique environment tailored to their specific
needs and seating requirements, whether its for eight or 100 passengers; for
private use, corporate, charter or even government transport."
The BBJ platform is flexible enough that customers can have a passenger
seating area as well as an executive lounge, a private suite and a bedroom, if
required.
The spacious interior makes it possible for passengers to be fully productive
during travel. When people spend as many as 14 hours on one leg of a flight and
are expected to be ready to work on arrival, it is important that onboard facilities
allow them to be productive en route, and refreshed and ready to work when they
arrive.
The following are examples that highlight the many applications for the
BBJ:
- A BBJ designed for medical evacuations and charter operations recently flew the
farthest distance yet for a BBJ: 6,854 nautical miles (12,694 kilometers).
- An all-business class 48-seat PrivatAir BBJ will soon begin operating as a
scheduled Lufthansa flight from Duesseldorf, Germany, to Newark, N.J., in the
United States.
- An intercontinental VIP transport BBJ will begin to be used by South African
Air Force starting later this year.
- A BBJ 2 soon will be available for charter operations through Multiflight Ltd.
in the United Kingdom, the first BBJ 2 to be based in Europe.
Two Boeing Business Jets are on static display at EBACE May 28 through 30 outside
Palexpo, the exhibition and conference center located on the perimeter of Geneva
International Airport. Boeing Business Jets also has an indoor booth at the show.
There are 214 exhibitors and 36 airplanes on display at EBACE.
Boeing Business Jets was launched in 1996 as a joint venture between Boeing
and General Electric. Designed for corporate and VIP applications, the Boeing
Business Jet is a high-performance derivative of the Next-Generation 737-700.
The BBJ 2, announced in October 1999, is based on the 737-800 and has 25
percent more cabin space and twice the cargo space of the BBJ. Both provide
unsurpassed levels of space, comfort and utility and are backed by a global
support program with dedicated field service representatives.
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