Boeing certifies blended winglets on Hapag-Lloyd 737-800
Early next year, German carrier Hapag-Lloyd Flug is expected to be the first airline to fly the Boeing 737-800 with blended winglets in revenue service following a successful certification test flight conducted on Sept. 26 in Seattle, WA.
Hapag-Lloyd provided one of its 737-800s as a certification-test airplane for the blended winglet technology. This airplane is expected to go into service early next year, which will make Hapag-Lloyd the first airline to commercially fly a 737-800 with blended winglets. Additional winglets are being retrofitted on Hapag-Lloyd's current fleet of 737-800s through a contract with Aviation Partners Boeing.
Unlike winglets fitted at abrupt angles to the wing, the new "blended" design curves out and up from the wing tip, reducing aerodynamic drag and boosting performance. Boeing says performance improvements include:
- an extended flying range of more than 150 miles;
- improved cruise fuel mileage of up to 6%;
- a payload increase of up to 6,000 lb;
- more efficient climb at less thrust - creating less noise and emissions; and
- improved take-off performance at high-altitude airports, in hot climate conditions, and at obstacle-limited airports.
Blended winglets are offered by Boeing on new 737-800s as an option and are installed during production. For retrofit, Boeing says the two-week procedure involves removing the wingtip and performing structural modifications to the wing before attaching the winglet.
Edited by David Robb
Managing Editor, AerospaceOnline.com