Boeing yesterday (Sunday 8 July) rolled out the prototype of its new 787 DreamLiner at its Everett, Seattle, plant in front of 15,000 staff, customers and suppliers, and a worldwide audience of millions.
The company will not put a date on the first flight except to say ”when the engineers are ready,” but it can perhaps be read as early September.
The 787 has set new records in terms of acceptance by the airline community with 766 units already committed. These orders include over the last few days 25 for Air Berlin, ALAFCO Aviation Lease and Finance Company of Kuwait, and 20 more for Qantas, bringing the Australian airline”s total up to 85. There has been nothing from British Airways as yet.
"This has been a wonderful and exciting day to celebrate this breakthrough airplane with our customers, employees, supplier partners and our communities," said Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO, Scott Carson. "We are gratified that the 787 has been so strongly validated in the marketplace by our customers. Their response is proof that the DreamLiner will bring real value to our airline customers, passengers and the global air transportation system."
Read ON TOUR for the full background