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Airline Fleet & Network Management - March/April 2006

Flying further for less:BlendedWinglets and their benefits

“Just as the automotiveindustry has transitioned toradial tires,the aviationindustry will upgrade toperformance-enhancingBlended Winglettechnology,”predictsAviation Partners Boeing(APB) chairman Joe Clark.Here,

APB

explains why,if youhaven’t already upgraded toBlended Winglet technology,your operating costs arehigher than they need to be.

It’s not easy changing the globalairline industry and the economics of flight. Once an aircraft model isdesigned it’s essentially frozen andyou’re pretty well stuck with theoriginal performance, range and fuel-burn parameters for the life of yourasset. Maximising cost efficiency,particularly for today’s low-fareairline carriers, typically comes downto managing external factors — hedging on fuel, maximising labourproductivity and fine-tuning assortedoperating and service costs. Untilrelatively recently, there really wasnot much an operator could do tomeasurably enhance performance,extend range and reduce fuel-burn onexisting aircraft, other than throughexpensive re-engine projects, such asfor the ageing 727 fleet. This allchanged, however, with theintroduction of Aviation Partners’Blended Winglet technology about 10years ago.Designed originally for theGulfstream II business jet in 1991, the5.5-foot tall wide-sweep BlendedWinglets dramatically extended rangeand reduced fuel burn up to sevenper cent via overall wing dragreduction. Retrofit fuel savings of thismagnitude previously required re-designing the entire aircraft or re-fitting new engines. In 1999 Boeingadopted Blended Winglet technologyto boost the range and marketabilityof its Boeing Business Jet. Soonthereafter Aviation Partners Boeing, a joint venture between AviationPartners and The Boeing Company,began offering Blended Winglettechnology to 737 NG operators, bothas retrofits and later as buyer-furnished equipment (BFE). The rest,as they say, is history.

Changing the economics of flight

Today, over 1,000 737 NGs areflying with Aviation Partners’ VisibleTechnology, over 50 per cent of the737-700/800 fleet is Blended Winglet-equipped and more than 85 per centof all new 737-700s/800s are factory-delivered with this technology.Operators range from SouthwestAirlines and Ryanair, with BlendedWinglet orders numbering in thehundreds, to smaller operators in far-flung locations on all continents of the world. Blended Winglet systemsare also available for 757-200s and737-300 Classics with a programme indevelopment for the 767-300.Aviation Partners’ Blended Wingletsystems improve the performance of any commercial or business aircraft,says Aviation Partners Boeingchairman Joe Clark: “People oftenthink of Blended Winglets as only forspecific aircraft but that’s not true.While we tailor Blended Wingletsystems to particular aircraft thistechnology works on any aircraft,from a smaller regional jet to theAirbus A380.”The primary driver in the massmigration to Blended Winglets amongboth operators and leasing companiesworldwide is quick payback oninvestment: typically between twoand three years on fuel savings alone.Typical 737 NG operators save95,000-130,000 gallons of fuel peraircraft per year and these fuelsavings benefits stay with theoperator for the entire economic life

SELECTION

Ryanair, the world’s most profitable airline, has committed to 229 737-800 Blended Wingletshipsets.

Airline Fleet & Network Management - March/April 2006

of the aircraft. Operators of BlendedWinglet-equipped 757-200s save evenmore: up to 240,000 gallons peraircraft per year. Along with thesesignificant and ongoing fuel savingscome a host of importantenvironmental benefits. A BlendedWinglet-equipped 737 reducescarbon monoxide and nitrous oxideemissions by 4 per cent and 5 percent respectively while decreasingthe take-off noise footprint by 6.5per cent. Thanks to improved wingefficiency and reduced noisefootprints, many Blended Winglet-equipped operators in Europe havebeen able to decrease operating feesand noise surcharges by opting forlower-thrust engines and lower maxtake-off weight.With fuel costs recently as high as$70 per barrel — and not expectedto come down dramatically over theforeseeable future — operators arelooking for any tools they can use toremain cost-competitive. “While it’sthe cost-saving attributes of ourtechnology that have made BlendedWinglets a necessity for today’sprogressive low-cost carriers, it’s thefuel savings benefits that I’m mostproud of,” says Clark. “BlendedWinglet fuel savings have totalledover 260 million gallons to date andthe industry will save another 120million gallons this year because of our technology. Assuming we deliver400 Blended Winglet shipsets peryear for the rest of the decade, ourtechnology will save approximately1.5 billion gallons of jet fuel for thedecade 2001-2010. At AviationPartners we’re doing our part in achanging world.”

Blended Winglet design

Aviation Partners’ BlendedWinglets differ in several importantways from the small, angular,wingtip appliances you see on manycommercial aircraft today. BlendedWinglet technology works as well asit does because the winglet systemsare sized for maximum advantagebased on available wing structureand are shaped with a patented widetransition chord from wing towinglet to minimise vortex drag.Aviation Partners’ chief aerodynamicist Dr Bernie Gratzercreated the Blended Winglet back in1991 by blending the airfoil formaximum performance whileensuring even wing loadings formaximum drag reduction. The endresult is a block fuel savings of fourto five per cent for 737s and evenmore for 757-200s, compared to 1-1.5per cent savings with traditional-style winglets.

Cases studies

Aeromexico, the largest airline inMexico, has ordered 38 BlendedWinglet shipsets for 737-800s and737-700s. Blended Winglet-equipped737-800s will be used to replaceexisting 757-200 routes to the US,including the 1,816nm route fromMexico City to New York. “While 5per cent block fuel savings were animportant benefit to Aeromexico theoverriding factor in this purchasedecision was the ability to effectivelyreplace 757-200s,” says AviationPartners Boeing’s VP sales PatrickLaMoria. “The performance/payloadbenefit of Blended Winglettechnology allows Aeromexico tooperate economically, with fullpassenger loads, out of high/hot

S E L E C T I O N

“Leasing companies havebecome more aggressive recently in investing in our technology for out-of-production aircraft,”saysLaMoria.“Operators retrofittingleased 757-200s with Blended Winglets typically save threetimes the cost of additional monthly lease rates based on fuel savings alone.”

—Patrick LaMoria,VP sales,Aviation Partners Boeing

Jet Airways, a leading player in the thriving Indian airline market,has 10 Blended Winglet shipsets on order.