Virgin Atlantic CEO Sees 747 Replacement Choice in 5-9 Months

   By Robert Wall 

LONDON--Virgin Atlantic Chief Executive Craig Kreeger said the carrier will decide in five to nine months how to replace its fleet of Boeing Co.'s (BA) 747s used on leisure routes.

The likely candidates are Boeing 787 long-range jets or the plane maker's even larger 777 as well as Airbus Group NV's A350 wide-bodies, he said Wednesday.

Virgin Atlantic flies seven 747s on leisure routes from London Gatwick. Those planes come to the end of their lease period starting in 2019.

The size of the fleet order, which would include options for growth, hasn't been fixed, Mr. Kreeger said. The airline has placed orders for A380 super-jumbos but is unlikely to take those, he reiterated while speaking at the World Travel Market conference.

Virgin Atlantic this year started flying Boeing's 787-9 Dreamliner to phase out less fuel efficient Airbus A340 jets and 747 jumbos flown out of London Heathrow. The carrier will introduce 21 Dreamliners in the next four years.

Boeing has struggled with reliability of a smaller version of the Dreamliner that came first. Mr. Kreeger said the 787-9 reliability has been good and on par with that seen on planes in service already a few years.

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