Monday, August 6, 2012

Air India, Ethiopian moving towards first 787 deliveries

Despite Friday's announcement that Air India has now been cleared to accept 787 deliveries from Boeng, it looks more likely that the first non-Japanese carrier to take ownership of a 787 will be Ethiopian.  In a press release, Ethiopian says that they will take delivery of their first 787 on August 14th and fly away on August 15th to Washington Dulles.  Air India is still trying to decide when to take formal ownership of the three 787s that are currently ready for delivery at Boeing Charleston.  The delivery is clouded by the failure of the GEnx engine in late July though the carrier is still taking delivery.  Neither the FAA or the NTSB as ordered a grounding of GEnx equipped aircraft and deliveries are continuing and are going to continue unless a significant issue is discovered by the parties investigating the incident.  Because of this Air India is obligated to take delivery of the airplanes or they can face storage fees and other costs.  The GEnx issue will nto be an impediment to delivery at this point unless there is something seriously wrong with the engine.  Air India still has to communicate to Boeing when they plan on taking the aircraft and rumors say that it could be as early as the end of this week.  I'm counting on a low key delivery ceremony given the tortuous path to delivery to Air India.  In the Wall Street Journal article, Jon Ostrower says that the three aircraft would be delivered one at a time spaced by 7 to 10 days which means that the three deliveries would take about a month to complete due to the need to send the Air India personnel back to Charleston to pick up each aircraft.

In the meantime, LAN's frst airplane, ZA536 (LN 68, CC-BBA) has taken its first flight today and is moving towards a late August to early September delivery to the airline. I do anticipate further first flights of the 787s that are in preflight including a gaggle of 787s for ANA and JAL that are on the flightline.

Here's the text of Ethiopian's Press Release:
Ethiopian Airlines to Receive its first Boeing 787 on August 14

Press Release

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia:
Ethiopian Airlines, the fastest growing airline in Africa, is pleased to announce that it will take delivery of its first Boeing 787 Dreamliner on August 14, 2012, in Seattle, Washington.


Ethiopian is proud to be the first airline from Africa, Europe, Americas and Middle East to take delivery of the Dreamliner, and to be able to offer its passengers the ultimate travel experience on-board this game changing aircraft before other carriers. “The fact that we are the first airline outside Japan to receive this ultra modern aircraft is an affirmation of our continuing pioneering role in African aviation. It is also a testimony of our commitment to give our passengers the best possible travel experience, with the best industry products and services.,” said Tewolde Gebremariam, CEO of Ethiopian.

After taking delivery, Ethiopian will fly its Dreamliner to Washington D.C. the next day, where the aircraft will be on display. During the exhibition, Ethiopian Dreamliner is expected to be visited by US Senators and House Representatives as well as Ambassadors, Executives from the World Bank and IMF, members of the Ethiopian community, the media and other invited guests.
Ethiopian Dreamliner, the first to be received by a non-Japanese carrier, will make its historic trip to Africa and will touchdown at Bole Addis Ababa International Airport on August 16, 2012. The airline will hold celebrations in Addis Ababa for the arrival of the aircraft and will soon announce its first Dream destinations.



8 comments:

Ret 747 Cap said...

Does anyone have a status on LN6 in San Antonio?

Johanny said...

Another one out on the 40-51 Apron, possibly the first for Hainan (red tail?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bernieleighton/7729114384/sizes/o/in/photostream/

HK Expat said...

Uresh - a few aircraft movements:
- UAL 54 moved to Fuel Dock
- JAL 70 moved to Flightline 108
- HAI 73 out of Assembly to 40-51 West
- QAT 62 off the flightline (no idea where it went)
- AI 28 moved out of long term storage (no idea where it went)
Cheers
A

Dave C said...

An update on the engine issue:

The National Transportation Safety Board provided an update Wednesday on the investigation into the failure of a Boeing Co. 787 engine, which occurred last month in South Carolina.

The 787 involved was powered by General Electric's GEnx engine.

The NTSB has determined that a mid-shaft engine fan fractured during the failure. The safety board is continuing its investigation. However, the NTSB noted that the failure is a "specific engine design feature" that "generally does not pose immediate safety risks."

During the July 28 incident, hot debris shot out of the 787's engine and sparked a fire at the Charleston airport. The airport closed for an hour.

Japan Airlines is the only current airline operating 787s with GEnx engines. Dreamliner launch customer All Nippon Airways operates 787s with Rolls-Royce engines.

Air India, which is set to take delivery of 787s with GEnx engines, has said it would wait for the NTSB report before doing so.

Boeing builds 787s both in North Charleston and in Everett. Air India is to receive the first 787 assembled in South Carolina.

does this mean they will have to ground the 787 fleet and 747s?

johnv777 said...

Uresh, do you have any idea of which LN# is parked next to United LN 53 in stall 109. It looks like it is in stall 110, has a white rudder, and has engines installed. It is visible in Matt's latest panorama picture.

Uresh said...

I'm trying to find out. It's parked in stall 201 actually.

Uresh said...

the unpainted aircraft next to the UA '87 is LN 71 for Ethiopian. It is in stall 201.

johnv777 said...

Uresh - Thanks for the update