Aircraft

Boeing rolls out first Dreamliner 787-9

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The 787-9 is the second Dreamliner variant (Photo: Boeing)
The 787-9 is the second Dreamliner variant (Photo: Boeing)
The 787-9 in its new paint livery (Photo: Boeing)
The first 787-9 being rolled out of the paint hanger (Photo: Boeing)
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Despite clocking up close to a thousand orders, it hasn't all been smooth sailing for Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner with two lithium-ion battery fires grounding the fleet earlier this year and a Honeywell-built emergency beacon catching fire on a Dreamliner at Heathrow Airport last month. The company took a step toward putting that behind it on Saturday when the first 787-9 Dreamliner variant rolled out at the Everett, Washington assembly plant. The first 787-9 off the line is scheduled to be delivered to Air New Zealand next year.

The first 787-9 being rolled out of the paint hanger (Photo: Boeing)

The twin-engine, twin-aisle 787 Dreamliner is Boeing’s mid-sized airliner aimed at the middle market. It’s the first major airliner to make heavy use of composite materials and, according to Boeing, it uses 20 percent less fuel and has 20 percent fewer emissions than other planes in its class. It also boasts higher cabin pressure and humidity, larger windows with electrochromic smart glass and a cruising speed of Mach 0.85 (567 mph, 490 knots, 913 km/h).

The 787-8 made its first passenger flight in October 2011.

The 787-9 is the second of three variants of the Dreamliner. It is 20 ft (6 m) longer than the 787-8 for a total length of 206 ft (63 m) and carries 250 to 290 passengers – 40 more than the 787-8. It also boasts a greater range of 8,000 to 8,500 nautical miles (14,800 to 15,750 km), which is 300 nautical miles (555 km) more than its predecessor.

A second and third 787-9 Dreamliner's are in final assembly and the first plane is expected to make flight tests in the coming weeks as it is prepared for final delivery.

Source: Boeing

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7 comments
Naresh Patel
actually the first 787-9 with be delivered to Air New Zealand next year.
Shawn Boike
Congratulations Team Mates! with many years to go in service... What makes this better than the A350?
Stephen Wyman
Two aisles??? The space could be used much better by using wider seats for comfortable passengers.
Stephen N Russell
Must for all airlines IE Delta, United & make great tanker for USAF alone.
christopher
40 more passengers = 290 people with a heap less leg space.
Air travel is stupid. They should design the plane to fit people in comfortably, not design the plane, then see how many people they can cram into it.
When was the last time you had a good nights sleep... sitting upright ?
Chinese buses, 20 years ago, all had beds for overnight trips, and no, I'm not talking luxury expensive ones - I mean the everyday cheap ones.
chann94501
Apparently the 787-9 was coming in slightly under weight, I wonder if they have also managed to trim 4 tons out of the -8? With the -8 carrying so much extra weight the range and payload were badly impacted and it wasn't the dream the airlines hoped for. I hope they have solved their major technical issues and they don't have any more near disasters. Next question is whether they can repair the one that burned in London and prove the practicality and repairability of their carbon fiber barrel construction technique.
Gargamoth
Companies (The greedy investors and share holders) first think about their bottom line (money) after that then people. I'm not saying it's right, that's just how they work.