The Boeing 777X folding wingtip is designed for reliability and simplicity, with no moving parts or even wingtip lights beyond the hinge line.

It was an unusual setting for a major aircraft order announcement. Media had been informed by Qatar Airways that the airline and Boeing would be making an “historic” announcement. But it would not be in Doha or Seattle, or even at one of the major air shows where large airline orders are typically announced. Instead, reporters were invited to the posh Four Seasons hotel in Washington DC’s upscale Georgetown neighborhood for a breakfast buffet, a press conference and luncheon.

By 2019, Beijing Capital, Hong Kong, Manila and Singapore all will have reached their runway capacity limits. Terminals at three of them also hit capacity.

Earlier in 2016, before Delta Air Lines placed a firm order for 75 Bombardier CSeries aircraft in late April, then Delta CEO Richard Anderson repeatedly praised the Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan (GTF) engine that exclusively powers the aircraft. The GTF, he said, was the single most significant innovation in commercial aircraft technology since Boeing introduced composites on the 787 in the previous decade.

Lufthansa will phase out its last Boeing 737 on Oct. 29 after completing a flight from Milan to Frankfurt.

Aircraft Briefs-Oct. 28, 2016

Boeing projects a market demand for 930 new factory-built freighter aircraft, valued at $270 billion, over the next 20 years.

Although an expansion of Heathrow Airport has been approved, political and legal hurdles remain.