The Hindu : Opinion / News Analysis : Beyond hubs and spokes: Boeing eyes a trend

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Nov 18, 2005

Opinion

Opinion - News Analysis

Beyond hubs and spokes: Boeing eyes a trend

V. Jayanth

Are non-stop, direct flights the key to the future? Will aviation hubs have to review their strategies to remain relevant?

THE NON-STOP, long-distance flying record that the Boeing 777-200 LR rewrote recently was not meant just for the record books. Coming at a time when Boeing's rival Airbus Industrie test-flew its Big Bird A380, the American aircraft manufacturer was trying to prove a point — that it is not just carrying capacity in an individual aircraft that airlines and passengers are looking for in the future, but convenience and direct, point-to-point, flights. In this respect, the non-stop Hong Kong to London Heathrow flight, with Darcy Hennemann and Frank Santoni in the cockpit, may well be a revolution in aviation.

As the marketing war between the world's two main aircraft manufacturers — Boeing and Europe's Airbus — intensifies, they seem to be adopting different strategies to woo airlines and, through them, passengers. The novelty of producing the world's largest aircraft must have caught the imagination of Airbus, which created a stir in unveiling its A380 and then test-flying it in Europe and beyond. The very fact that the aircraft can carry a minimum of 540 passengers appealed to airline managers. A lot of research, funding, and marketing has gone into the making of the A380.

Different approach

But Boeing has a different approach. Based on market studies, the Seattle-headquartered manufacturer is looking at future markets, flying patterns, potential congestion at major airports and the bottom-line of airlines. As of now, the A380 can fly only to the really large airports, such as Hong Kong, Sydney, Tokyo, Singapore, London Heathrow, Paris, New York and a few others in Europe and the U.S. But is that all the airlines and their passengers want to do? Boeing's surveys showed that most business travellers were unhappy wasting time at large airports such as London, when their actual work was elsewhere. They would rather opt for a direct flight to their actual destination.

So Boeing decided to put its money and planning into direct flights. And the 777-200 LR was the choice.

This twin-engine aircraft could fly non-stop for 22 to 24 hours. It can eliminate the four to six hours of waiting time often required for connecting flights, and the anxiety about booked baggage getting on to the flight. For the passenger it means saving in time and cost; for the airline, a lower seat configuration to market.

Boeing plans to bet on long-haul direct flights. Not only the 787, even the Advanced jumbo 747 will be equipped for point-to-point operations, according to managers of the company.

Much work has gone into the use of material in order to reduce the net weight of the aircraft and improve fuel consumption through technology upgradation and design modifications.

Ultimately, the success or failure of such approaches could determine the future of the "hub-and-spoke" concept in aviation. Over the past few decades, airlines have organised their operations in such a way as to collect passengers from different centres and route them through a hub to international routes. It was Hong Kong, Tokyo or Sydney in East Asia, Singapore or Kuala Lumpur in Southeast Asia, Mumbai or Colombo in South Asia, Dubai or Sharjah in West Asia, Frankfurt, London or Paris in Europe, New York or San Francisco in the U.S.

Changing scenario

But all that has already undergone change. More and more airlines are connecting several major business and tourist centres in most countries. The addition of Bangalore, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, and Ahmedabad to the international circuit, apart from the four major metros, has enabled passengers from the respective States and regions to board international flights directly from their base.

If non-stop, direct flights are the key to the future, the aviation hubs will have to review their plans and strategies to remain relevant, viable and attractive. The change is not going to take place overnight, but a shift in operations and strategies appears imminent.

Boeing's demonstration of its capability to provide that facility and the plans under way to make air travel more comfortable and pleasant, could provide the final tilt in favour of this point-to-point approach. The airlines will have to do their homework to identify the most sought-after routes instead of having to route passengers through London or Frankfurt for that matter.

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