According to Saj Ahmad of Strategic Aero Research, Boeing will make a contractual delivery of the Qatar Airways' first 787 this week (today, tomorrow, or day after tomorrow). The aircraft is ZA461 (LN 58, A7-BCB). A delivery ceremony will occur around Oct. 17th with fly away to Doha soon after that. He has high confidence that this will occur during the next two weeks. A second source confirms that delivery will be made well before Oct. 17th (didn't have a date).
The reason of the delay are issues with the IFE supplied by Thales. U Turn Al's outburst was for the benefit of the media (Qatar privately is happy with the GEnx engines) but I wouldn't discount any other motives such as trying to get more compensation from either GE or Boeing.
I'll keep my ears to the ground to hear about any contractual delivery made this week to Qatar Airways.
So, will follow on Qatar Aircraft 78's not go through a U-Turn AL's ceremony to acrimony to delivery? What will happened for the next 29 craft?
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