The 787 has been delivered to several different customers now and it is worth looking at who has received their aircraft thus far:

• Air India (2)
• All Nippon Airways (14)
• Ethiopian Airlines (1)
• Japan Airlines (6)
• LAN (1)
• United Airlines (1)

And many are set to be delivered in the near future.  Airlines such as LOT, China Southern, QATAR and Hainan Airlines should all be receiving their first 787 aircraft as well.

Notice anything yet?  With the exception of United Airlines, all of these airlines are far away from the North American continent.  It exposes just how much US based airlines have *not* been thinking far ahead for the past decade.

And it shows just how far they have to go to catch up with the efficiencies that other airlines will be enjoying in the near future.  One has to ask oneself how it is that Air India has two 787s already and Delta, American Airlines and US Airways have . . . none.  With none on the horizon.

Yes, United Airlines will be receiving more and more as time goes by but they are the only ones for the near future.

Airlines have to be managed tactically (short term) at any one moment.  But they must be planned strategically and failing that, you’ll see their fortunes decline considerably at some point.

Filed under: Aircraft Development, Airline Fleets by ajax