Is The 797 Designed to Move More Than Passengers?

The 797 is not a incremental aircraft wedged between the single aisle Max and the dual aisle 787. It is an aircraft that has a dual purpose which the other types can't claim. Moving passenger is job 1 and then moving Airbus is Job 2. The 787 was supposed to move Airbus out and then came the A-350. 

Winging It Companion Article 7-9-2017:

If Boeing Gets The 797 Right, Then What?

However, the true impact on Airbus came at this year's airshow. Both framers had a matured WB program and a similar backlog of around the 700's in units to  be delivered. The time around Paris should of been a 50-50 split in WB orders using conventional reason. However, something changed for both makers of medium WB CRFP aircraft. Boeing flat out stole the show, and put A350 proponents to rest. Boeing out sold Airbus' medium wide body at the show and then after the show just for good measure. Both manufacturers where positioned to do something average in a so far tepid sales year.

Boeing stole the show starting with the Single Aisle announcing the 737 Max 10. Then it announce another 30, 787-9's from AerCap. After the show which a long held undisclosed commitment for 20 777-X's and 19 787-10's came in as a firm order. Airbus just ran out of aviation gas during June and it showed. The pace will quicken for Airbus as Boeing ponders its NMA and Airbus can't prepare for what the NMA will be, so it must wait until Boeing's announcement. Airbus will then react with either an A-321 Max beater, or it will have to compete with Boeing's gap-liner. The 797 won't be a rendition of the Max-10 nor will it be a dressed down 787-300. Boeing won't say and that says a lot about what predicament Boeing hopes to put Airbus into when it started with the 787 Dream.

In all, Boeing increased its 2017 order book up to 79 Boeing 787's and 33 Boeing 777's totaling,  112 wide body orders since January 2017. In contrast Airbus has booked only 33 wide body including the A-330 and A350 types. Boeing overwhelmed Airbus by 3.4 times its number of wide body during the first six months of 2017. Even though this is a snapshot look at mid year, things can change, but the change that is seen is for the 787 family of WB aircraft as orders remain strong and A350 orders have weaken during the last 36 months. Boeing is about to launch its A-321 killer where the 737-10 Max holds the A-321 in place for the killer punch that is coming. The 797 will not be an incremental change for Boeing's line of aircraft. It will be everything from Max through X! 

Every proven and established technology will be included in the 797. All that would remain is testing of pairing the 797 with its technology taken from other programs.

Airbus has a lot to think about as the A-380 counts down backlog in a waning market for double-decks with four engines. Do they build an all new Gap-liner or re-do the A-321 with everything NEO again? It waits for a Boeing announcement for that answer. 

John Leahy, Airbus Chief Salesman echos this sentiment; "We will have the luxury of sitting there, looking at what they do, and answering at a later date” with something better". 

Airbus wants to lead from the rear.

The technique Airbus uses to date is react to everything Boeing and now the American giant has caught on to the Airbus game style. Airbus does not do cutting edge well or hasn't done it since inventing the joy stick pilots fly with its family of aircraft. Boeing will build the 797 where it will expose Airbus for they pretend to be, a leading edge builder of aircraft. The 797 will kill Airbus aspirations going forward. No one foresaw Boeing receiving 112 wide body orders by June 30, 2017. Its a "market proclaimed down year" for airplane orders which also happens to be better than some "up years" for Boeing's order book.

The 797 is designed to move Airbus out of the way.