Quote:
Originally Posted by Ash W
Would be interesting to see what price British Airways got them for and what they do with them once the 787's and indeed the A380's start to arrive.
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Most definitely, especially considering the face that BA will only purchase 2 of them while leasing out the remaining four from GECAS. Once those leases are up (and if BA don't chose to extend the lease agreement) then you could probably expect those 2 77Ws getting snapped-up on the second-hand market real quick.
When you think about it though with a more long-term view, it's quite a tactical move by BA. Not only will the 77W be beneficial for them when compared to the less-efficient 774s, but also provide great flexibility for many long-haul routes. Also, if by the end of the year BA's RFP evaluation leads to orders for A350-1000s, then the current 77Ws can act as a safeguard in case there are delays in delivery of those A350-1000s, with the delay compensations going towards further leased 77Ws to fill any capacity shortfall, or used to upgrade any A388 orders to A389s if indeed the -900 is offered by mid-next decade.
Who knows, maybe BA will love the 77Ws as much as EK and AC do they may opt to order a dozen more to be a legitimate model in their line-up to sit between their 787s and A380s until an A350-1000ER/HGW is launched to truely replace the 777-300ER.