Anything you can do …

The long-awaited Boeing 777 aircraft was launched last night, with its makers claiming that it can fly from London to Sydney non-stop – but just two manufacturers have signed up to buy the jet. The 777-200LR Worldliner – to give it its proper name – was unveiled at a ceremony at Washington last night, just a few weeks after Airbus pulled the covers off its “superjumbo”. But despite the general euphoria among many of those present, experts are warning that the 300-seater Boeing model has several disadvantages – among them, the fact that headwinds would actually make a direct London-to-Sydney service very difficult to achieve. Though Pakistan International Airlines and the Taiwan carrier Eva Air have signed up to buy a limited number of the jets, The Guardian reports, one aviation firm has cast doubts over the aircraft’s future success. Chris Tarry, of STAIRA, is quoted as saying: “I don’t see anybody rushing forward to buy large numbers of these aeroplanes.” Referring to the London-Sydney route, he added: “It’s a frighteningly competitive route. Technically you could do it with this new plane, but the question is how much money are you actually going to make from it?” Whatever the outcome, most media commentators seem to agree that a real “battle for the skies” is upon us … Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad Ltd