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Suitors ponder if Boeing seriously wants divorce

By Dominic Gates
Seattle Times aerospace reporter

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"When you really want a divorce, you want a divorce," said one civic mover-and-shaker in Savannah, Ga., a site still in the running. "You don't start talking to your wife about maybe dating other women."

And yet, recent Boeing announcements have convinced some that the company is indeed serious about playing the field.

Less than a week after Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Alan Mulally publicly disparaged Washington's business climate and highways with his "we suck" comment, the company declared it intends to transport major sections of its 7E7 jet to the final assembly site by air, using a small fleet of modified 747s.

That seemed at once to limit the presumed geographical advantage of Everett as a Japan-facing port on the West Coast and to increase the chances of East Coast contenders such as Charleston, S.C.; Kinston, N.C.; and Savannah.

Two people familiar with Savannah's 7E7 bid report continued talks between Boeing and local authorities in recent weeks.

Negotiations have specifically looked at ways to help the company operate three supersized air transports.

Boeing would like the planes, which could cost upwards of $300 million, to be owned and operated by someone else, perhaps an existing air-freight carrier.

"There's no shortage of existing 747 freighter operators who would be more than interested in flying the airplanes on a cost-plus contract and handle the available empty space on the return leg," said Ned Laird, managing director of the Seattle-based industry consultants Air Cargo Management Group.

The hard part might be finding cargo to fill the planes on the return trip from Japan or Europe.

Steve Dix, senior director of cargo at World Airways in Atlanta, which already does work with Boeing, described as "challenging" the job of marketing the return "empty leg" of the journey after delivering the 7E7 parts to the U.S.

"There's not much freight that goes over to Japan. Most of it comes back from that part of the world," Dix said.

"I think there'd have to be a commitment (from Boeing) to cover costs on a round-trip basis."

Such practical concerns make analysts skeptical about Boeing's declared air-freight plan.

Still, if Boeing was sending a message to the East Coast sites that it's serious, it has succeeded.

Dominic Gates: 206-464-2963 or dgates@seattletimes.com

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