Four years ago, the former president of Varig, Fernando Souza Pinto, announced at the Farnbourgh Fair the plan for renewing medium sized aircraft for the company. The announcement referred to the arrival of 15 Boeing 737-700s and 10 Boeing 737-800s planes to replace the older Boeing 737-200s of the fleet, which were approaching the limit of the cycle established by the makers.

However, the schedule devised by Varig was to undergo some touching-up on account of the frequent ups and downs of Brazilian economy, directly influenced by external crises and the devalued real. Of the 25 aircraft that had been commissioned, just six planes were delivered (five B737-700s and one B737-800). Even in October last the company announced its decision to postpone the immediate delivery of at least four aircraft of the –800 series.

“We intend to delay the removal from operation of the 13 Boeing 737-200s, until the measures for reducing the fleet are decided upon in the face of the new reality of world civil aviation following the terrorist attempts in the US,” states the resident of Varig, Ozires Silva. Even so, the executive guarantees the incorporation of the new aircraft and points out that the company has just received the first widebody Boeing 777-200. “This shows our concern for keeping up the quality of the service offered by the company,” emphasizes Silva.

The planes were chosen for their technical and economic characteristics and for their reduced fuel consumption.

The outstanding new feature of the Boeing 737-800 that Varig received in September 2001 consists in the addition of winglets to the tips of the wings. Molded in carbon graphite, they guarantee a 3.5 to 4% economy in flights over 1000 nautical miles, increasing the paid cargo of the aircraft by 2,270 kg while improving the take-off performance.

However, for Varig there will be no great savings in fuel since it uses this plane for short stretches, between the cities of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba, Porto Alegre, Natal and Fortaleza.

When the new B 737-700s arrive, the company has also reserved short flights so that crew and maintenance teams can adapt to the new machine.

The B 737-800 winglets are fairly noticeable and do not escape the passengers’ notice and even that of the pilots flying for other companies. Nor is it unusual for the pilots to receive complimentary remarks through the air communication systems.

The maker obtained a supplementary certificate issued by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) on March 23, 2001 in order to install the winglets in the 737 family. To get to know the new Varig Boeing 737-800 better we boarded flight 2118 that covers a stretch one-and-a-half hours long between Guarulhos and the International Airport Salgado Filho, in Porto Alegre.

Undoubtedly, the aircraft is certainly more elegant with its winglets, which combine with a longer fuselage (3.1 m longer than the –400 model of classic generation). This B 737-800 received its official form in Porto Alegre (150 seats in Economy and 12 in Business), since its original configuration was single class with 189 seats. In order to offer good service to so many passengers Varig has appointed five airhostesses for these flights, four for Economy and one for Business. The plane is fitted with liquid crystal monitors for entertainment on board, which are lowered from the luggage bins. The latter are roomier than those found on classic models. “We also gained more space in the galleys, which are more comfortable to work in,” points out Melissa Watkins, in charge of Business class.

As to its performance, the Boeing 737-800 maintains the same characteristics as the other new generation models, i.e. 41,000-ft. altitude, a maximum cruising speed of Mach 0.82. The General Electric CFM56-7 jet engines are the same as those on the Boeing 737-700s, though they are more powerful (27,300 pounds as against 24,000 pounds in each engine).

Another of the plane features is its remarkable autonomy. The flight from the Boeing factory in Seattle to Río de Janeiro was carried out with just one stopover in Cancún. Its maximum autonomy is 3,383 nautical miles (5,440 km.).

This latest generation aircraft is fitted with the most modern equipment for flight safety. The 737s carry EGPWS (a warning system reacting to ground proximity), derived from GPWS, which was developed in the ‘80s with the object of reducing type CFIT accidents (ground direction controlled flight).

Likewise, they have an RDR-48 radar system that informs digitally on the possibility of wind change within a radius of five nautical miles. This warning is very important for the crew: history registers several accidents caused by wind shear (abrupt changes in wind speed or direction).

The latest generation Boeing 737 pilots also count on an efficient TCAS system (warning or collision avoidance system) that covers a radius of 40 nautical miles. To this end it sends out sound and visual warnings for evasive maneuvering, thus avoiding collisions with other aircraft during flight.

(*) Courtesy of Flap International journal