Even with orders and commitments past the 500 mark, an industry record for an aircraft that has not yet flown, Boeing sees British Airways as the icing on the cake for the world”s first true 21st century aircraft.
At its Heston distribution centre near Heathrow, the Seattle-based manufacturer has installed a full mock-up of a 787 interior featuring the aircraft”s large windows and several variations on seat layouts. A large screen video presentation takes you through the aircraft, both from a technical and cabin point of view. It is in the past tense. The mock-up has moved on to a further undisclosed site.
No one will say, but it is believed that some of the BA hierarchy in recent times visited the presentation, somewhat lost in the 50,000sq ft building, just behind Boeing”s European headquarters on the Bath Road.
Heston is a little more than five miles from BA”s fortress of Waterside, known as the London Distribution Centre (LDC), one of eight around the world it is open 365 days of the year, offering 45,000 part numbers and 6m individual items.
Heston is one of those historical aviation sites now largely lost and forgotten. In fact it was where the then prime minister, Neville Chamberlain, flew from to Munich in 1938 for talks with Hitler, and returned to his famous "peace in our time" speech.
Just behind the M4 service area some of the buildings that were part of the 1930s airport still exist and there a whole series of road names with flying connections, including Alcock, Brabazon, Bleriot, Cobham, de Havilland, Johnson, Whittle and the Wright brothers.