Boeing Business Jets

Zip of the VIPs
Luxury Aircrafts: The Boeing Business Jets are equipped with the same creature comforts one generally is accustomed to finding only at ground level. The VIP aircrafts are available in three models ranging from 807 to up to 1,120 square feet. BBJs are designed with VIP and corporate usage in mind. There is ample space for offices, bedrooms, bathrooms, as well as sleeping, dining, meeting and entertaining areas. Each aircraft sold is customized to match a buyer's exact specifications. In 1996, the Boeing Business Jets division projected sales of six to eight units annually. Demand definitely prompted a surprising production dilemma as 71 airplanes were sold during its first four years of manufacturing. The first BBJ model's fuselage is approximately 110 feet long and is authorized per FAA regulations to carry up to 63 passengers. It can remain aloft for 14 hours with an intercontinental flight range (IFR) of 6,200 nautical miles (nm). The BBJ2, which was introduced in 2001 and entered service in 2002, has a fuselage that measures 129.5 feet in length; provides 25 percent more room than the first model; and is certified to accommodate up to 78 passengers. Its IFR is just over 5,750 nm. The Boeing Business Jet 3 model has 25 percent more space than the first model and 11 percent more than the second. The nose-to-tail length of its fuselage is just over 138 feet. The winglets on the tips of the wings of three BBJs are more than just a distinctive marketing signature. Engineers and designers both originally dismissed those winglets as being nothing more than fanciful, non-contributing components. However, they were all somewhat surprised and, maybe a tad embarrassed, when it was proven that the winglets lowered the aircrafts' drag by seven percent. The Boeing Company and the General Electric Company are partners in the Boeing Business Jet line. The VIP jets are designed in the tradition of the Boeing 737-700C commercial aircraft. Boeing offers a list of capable designers to assist with customizing the interior of the BBJs. Andrew Winch Designs, a firm we previously covered for its design work with Lufthansa, is listed on Boeing's Web site. Word always travels fast when a firm does good work.

For LxM James Rothaar