Date: 27 Dec 96 04:41:02
From: don@rata.vuw.ac.nz (Don Stokes)
Organization: Victoria University of Wellington
References: 1 2 3 4
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In article <airliners.1996.2963@ohare.chicago.com>,
Karl Swartz <kls@ohare.Chicago.COM> wrote:
>True, though the DC-8 wasn't that far behind the 707 and I didn't
>think that it hurt all that much. Boeing made some mistakes with
>the 707 that gave the DC-8, though later, some advantages -- the
>fuselage width, at least as originally designed, and poorer engines
>to name two.
But all faults Boeing was able to rectify, although at enormous cost. The
only real killer was the placement of the main gear which prevented
Boeing from stretching the 707 in the way Douglas managed with the -8.
Boeing was also prepared, in an effort go regain the market share lost to
Douglas right back in the 247 days, to make expensive modifications to
the basic 707 to suit customer needs. Douglas, caught in a hasty and
expensive programme to catch up, could not be so flexible.
>Production problems with the DC-9 during an order boom and too many
>versions of the DC-8 in the Super Sixty form were the real killer
>moves by Douglas.
The DC-9 was also grossly underpriced, at a time when the only real
competition in that market were the BAC-111 and Caravelle. Douglas was
selling a lot of DC-9s, but wasn't making enough money from them to
expand production.
--
Don Stokes, Network Manager, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
don@vuw.ac.nz(work) don@zl2tnm.gen.nz(home) +64 4 495-5052 Fax+64 4 471-5386
