All Nippon Airways (ANA) has begun local preparations for the first commercial flight of Boeing’s next-generation aircraft, the 787 Dreamliner.
Test aircraft ZA002, in ANA livery, left Boeing’s Seattle factory this weekend and landed for the first time on Asian soil at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.
Over the coming week ANA pilots and Boeing crew will fly the Dremaliner on actual airline routes using airline dispatch and flights rules.
Maintenance, servicing and flight crew operations will take place at five airports: Tokyo, Osaka (Itami and Kansai), Okayama and Hiroshima.
The simulated day-to-day operations will allow ANA to prepare for the delivery of its first 787, due between August and September.
Shinichiro Ito, ANA’s CEO, said the airline is proud to be the first airline in the world to operate a 787.
“The Dreamliner is an integral part of our plans to become Asia's number one airline and will allow us to bring new standards of comfort and service to our passengers,” he said.
ANA’s inaugural route for the 787 will be either Haneda-Okayama or Haneda-Hiroshima.