dreamliner

SEATTLE--Just hours after it showed its 787 Dreamliner simulator and Customer Experience Center on Thursday, Boeing announced another delay for its newest airplane. According to press release issued Thursday night, delivery of the first aircraft will move from the end of this year to the first quarter of 2011.

"The delivery date revision follows an assessment of the availability of an engine needed for the final phases of flight test this fall," the statement said. "While Boeing works closely with Rolls-Royce to expedite engine availability, flight testing across the test fleet continues as planned." The company … Read more

Boeing will open its 787 Dreamliner simulator to journalists Thursday and provide an update on when the delay-plagued airplane will finally enter service. This CNET reporter will be lucky enough to take a virtual ride and visit the company's Customer Experience Center in Renton, Wash., where airline buyers can view cabin mockups, design aircraft interiors, and receive maintenance and flight training.

For the 787, which Boeing first announced six years ago, the demonstration, and the recent Federal Aviation Administration approval to begin pilot training, are more milestones in the aircraft's long development. The first major airliner to be built of carbon fiber composite materials, the Dreamliner took off and landed on its first flight last December.

Delivery to the launch customer, All Nippon Airways, was set for the end this year, but that date could move to early 2011 as Boeing completes the flight and design testing necessary for FAA certification. Only then can it begin flying airline passengers.

Cheaper and farther The 787's composite materials, along with a sharper nose and curved, upswept wings, promise greater fuel efficiency, quieter engines, and longer range. Indeed, the most powerful 787 model will be able to fly 8,500 nautical miles, which is enough to fly between Chicago and Sydney nonstop. … Read more

When the new kid on the block meets the grizzled old veteran, it can be a beautiful sight to see.

On May 8, in a promotional moment worthy of its setting, Boeing's newest airplane, the 787 Dreamliner, briefly met up in the skies over Washington State's Mount Rainier with the company's first-ever commercial production aircraft, the Model 40.

As seen in the image above, the rendezvous was a serious moment of old meets new. But for Boeing, the chance to put the two planes together in the sky was all about taking a quick moment from months … Read more

Updated at 4:28 p.m. PST with additional details about the 747-8F.

EVERETT, Wash.--With all the recent hoopla about the first flight of Boeing's 787 Dreamliner, true aviation buffs may be the only ones aware that the most iconic jumbo jet of all time was also preparing for a crucial step forward.

And on Monday, it happened: the 747-8 Freighter, the next generation of Boeing's 40-year-old flagship jet, took off from Paine Field here, the first flight of the cargo version of what will be the longest commercial plane in the company's history, a very important advancement for the venerable 747 program.

The 747-8 is considered an essential airplane for Boeing, even as it proceeds with the 787 Dreamliner, because the former will be the aviation giant's entry in the more energy-efficient roster of planes that airlines and freight carriers are demanding for long-haul flights with high capacity for passengers and cargo. (The passenger version of the plane is set to arrive about a year after the cargo model.)

And while the passenger version of the 747-8 is perhaps sexier than the freighter that took off at 12:39 p.m. PST on Monday, the 747-8F's first flight is vital evidence that the 747 program is alive and well, and ready to move solidly into the 21st century.

Boeing says that the 747-8 will be quieter and far more fuel-efficient than the existing 747-400 series. It is thought that the passenger version will hold as many as 467 passengers, 51 more than on a current 747-400. The freighter version will offer 21 percent more lower-hold revenue cargo volume than the 747-400 and cost about 8 percent less per seat mile to operate, the company says.

A big part of the plane's improved efficiency comes from an innovative wing design which features double-slotted flaps inboard, and single-slotted flaps outboard, fly-by-wire spoilers and outboard ailerons. The plane also features GEnx-2B67 engines, similar to the GEnx engines that will power the 787 Dreamliner. The engine features a high-pressure compressor that is the most efficient and compact GE has yet produced, Boeing says. The result is said to be high fuel efficiency and low noise.

Boeing said the 747-8F will offer the lowest cargo cost-per-mile in the business. It weighs 154 tons, has a range of 4,390 nautical miles, a height of 63 feet, 6 inches, a wing span of 224 feet, 7 inches, and a length of 250 feet, 2 inches. It can reach Mach 0.85

The Monday takeoff was delayed by nearly three hours by low cloud cover, and the flight was scheduled for about four hours in the air, with a series of initial tests intended to demonstrate the plane's airworthiness.

But as Boeing deputy test program manager Brian Johnson said, Monday's flight was much more "a chief pilot time," as it marked the first opportunity for Capt. Mark Feuerstein, the man in that role in the 747 program, to have "four hours in the cockpit to just get comfortable with" the plane. … Read more

Boeing on Wednesday released the first image of an actual 787 Dreamliner interior.

The picture is from the third test flight 787, which is known as ZA003. That plane has a partial interior "that provides a glimpse into the new flying experience the airplane will offer," Boeing said.

It was the first time the aviation giant showed what a 787 decked out with passenger seats and luggage bins looks like on the inside. Previously, it had only shown mock-ups.

According to Boeing, the test plane's interior has 135 seats, several lavatories, and dual crew rests. "Passengers … Read more

Boeing on Friday reported that it has completed the first round of stall tests for its 787 Dreamliner, just over a month after the plane's much-publicized first flight.

That first flight took place at Paine Field in Everett, Wash., on December 15, 2009. Since then, the company has been subjecting two separate 787s to a series of tests, all of which are meant to advance the plane toward its initial commercial delivery sometime later this year.

For the stall tests, the 787's pilots deliberately reduced power in both the plane's engines and then quickly attempted to resume … Read more

If Boeing is going to keep on producing jumbo jets with state-of-the-art networking technology, it may have to get used to dealing with government demands that it ensure the planes are not hackable.

Earlier this month, as reported by AVWeb, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued "special conditions" regarding Boeing's forthcoming 747-8--the next-generation of its iconic 747 line of planes--aimed at making sure that the new plane's high-tech networking systems are hack-proof.

The 747-8, which should have its first flight any day now, is intended to be a much more efficient and powerful version … Read more

Boeing announced Friday that its 787 Dreamliner airplane has completed the initial airworthiness testing. The milestone allows for more crew members to take part in flights and more airplanes to join the flight test program.

According to Boeing, since the first flight in mid-December, the test program has conducted 15 flights and achieved several important accomplishments. The test airplane has reached an altitude of 30,000 feet and a speed of Mach 0.65 (close to 400 nautical miles per hour) with nearly 60 hours of flying time completed. During these flights, initial stall tests and other dynamic maneuvers have … Read more

Earlier this week I had the very awesome opportunity to attend the first flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Seattle. This is usually Daniel Terdiman's beat, but knowing that I'm a huge airline geek, CNET let me take a break from cell phones to cover the first flight. Daniel wrapped up the event with blogs and great photos of the take-off and landing--I helped by shooting the take-off video--but I also had the opportunity to visit the Dreamliner Gallery.

The gallery, which is located in Everett, Wash., just near Paine Field where the 787 was … Read more