More 787 movement

When it rains, it pours...I've been using that comment more often in the last few weeks for many reasons. The reason today in this posting is because Dreamliner 2 (ZA002) has left building 40-26 yesterday and made its way to the same paint hangar that Dreamliner 1 had until recently had occupied.

It's getting its paint job though I'm not sure what paint scheme it'll be painted in. There is also no word on where it will go after the paint job...it could go to the flight line, building 40-24 (767 line) or even back to 40-26. It will have to go through the same set of gauntlet tests that Dreamliner 1 is going through.

This also opens up a spot on the 787 (assuming it doesn't go back to 40-26) for Dreamliner 7 (ZA100). It's not known if Dreamliner 4 through 6 have move down one spot on the line or not though I do think that the last two sections for ZA100 should be in soon.

Charles Concklin is gracious enough to allow me to link to his pictures of Dreamliner 2 being rolled to the paint hangar.

ZA002 pic 1

ZA002 pic 2

ZA002 pic 3

ZA002 pic 4

ZA002 pic 5

ZA002 pic 6

ZA002 pic 7

Dreamliner 1 coming out today

Above three photos courtesy of Boeing

The next three photos are courtesy of Jon Ostrower of Flightblogger

Photos courtesy of Jon Ostrower at Flightblogger.

Well it finally looks like that Dreamliner 1 is leaving the paint hangar (that was for you Chris) and proceeding to the fueling dock. According to tweets from Jon, the door are wide open so Dreamliner should be out soon.

Further, Guy Norris just posted an update stating that fueling tests now won't start until May 5th (Tuesday). The dueling tests will be used to calibrate the fuel quantity indicating system and the fuel quantity data concentrators. There also maybe a a final round of hydraulics testing for later in the week which may explain the delay in the fueling tests. Read Guy's posting.

UPDATE: Guy has a second post regarding the roll out to the fuel dock as well as Boeing's statement. Read it here.

Read Boeing Press Release Below:

Boeing 787 Dreamliner Moves to Flight Line for Testing

EVERETT,
Wash., May 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Boeing (NYSE: BA - News) 787 Dreamliner that will fly later this quarter has moved to the flight line. Fuel testing -- the first in the next phase of extensive checks the airplane must undergo -- will begin in the next few days.

"We are making great progress, and moving ever-closer to first flight," said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 Dreamliner program. In recent weeks, the 787 (designated ZA001) completed a rigorous series of tests including build verification tests, structures and systems integration tests, landing gear swings and factory gauntlet, which is the full simulation of the first flight using the actual airplane. With Chief Pilot Mike Carriker at the controls, the simulation tested all flight controls, hardware and software. The simulation also included manual and automatic landings and an extensive suite of subsequent ground tests. "These results give us confidence in our ability to move into further gauntlet testing using either ground power or the airplane's engines or auxiliary power unit. This is a significant milestone on the path to first flight," Fancher said. All structural tests required on the static airframe prior to first flight also are complete. The final test occurred April 21 when the wing and trailing edges were subjected to their limit load -- the highest loads expected to be seen in service. The load is about the same as the airplane experiencing 2.5 times the force of gravity. "We continue to analyze the data, but the initial results are positive," Fancher said. On April 13, the leading edge of the wing was subjected to its limit load while the rest of the airplane was subjected to loads expected at cruise. And in September 2008, the "high blow" high-pressure test was completed on the static airframe. During that test, the airframe reached an internal pressure of 150 percent of the maximum levels expected to be seen in service -- 14.9 lbs. per square inch (1.05 kilograms per centimeter) gauge (psig). Ground vibration testing, which measures the airplane's response to flutter, also concluded on the second flight-test airplane, designated ZA002, at the end of this week. All the necessary structural tests required prior to first flight are now complete. Now on the flight line, ZA001 will undergo additional airplane power and systems tests as well as engine runs. After completing final systems checks and high-speed taxi tests, the airplane will be ready for first flight, which is on schedule for later this quarter.

The 787 Dreamliner has orders for 886 airplanes from 57 customers.
Contact: Yvonne Leach, 787 Communications, +1 206-854-5027 or mailto:yvonne.l.leach@boeing.com;_ylt=AiHnGa965drDITnLEzrd5tmuMncA

Major 787 Update

With Boeing briefing the media over the last couple of days regarding the 787, there has been a lot of information coming out of Everett.

First Jon Ostrower got an amazing amount of pictures especially of Dreamliner 1 in the paint hanger at Everett. Check out his Flickr page here and scroll through photos he took this past week which includes the 747-8 final assembly as well as the 787.

Also there is a nice video from the Seattle Times of the 787:

Now on to the meat. Dreamliner 1 is still in the paint hanger after having it's fuel tanks under go the aqueous wash to remove the dirt and debris. Technicians are now installing the final test flight instrumentation and wiring as well as closing up access panels they needed to remove in order to wash the tanks.

During the day today (Friday, May 1st) Boeing will rerun electrical systems tests to make sure the glitch that showed up last weekend doesn't reoccur. All this work is expected to be completed today.

It is expected that Dreamliner 1 will be towed to the fuel dock just outside the paint hanger on Saturday where the fuel loading instrumentation will be tested and calibrated and the first load of fuel is pumped into the 787s three large tanks (one in each wing and one in the center wing box).

Soon after the fueling, Boeing will start up the APU and the Rolls Royce Trent 1000 engines for the first time and kicking off the intermediate gauntlet. The intermediate gauntlet should kick off sometime next week. Part of the intermediate gauntlet testing is to replicate the factory gauntlet tests but instead of being hooked up to an external power cart power will be provided by the 787's engines and APU. This will be key test to make sure that the 787 will be able to generate all the power it needs for flight.

Meanwhile work is continuing on the other 5 test flight airplanes with Dreamliner 2 finishing up ground vibration tests yesterday. One person there told me that Dreamliner 2 looks fantastic. Dreamliner 3 still needs some work and the engines have yet to put on Dreamliner 4 through 6 and are still in varying stages of work. It is expected that Dreamliner 2 will be flying within three weeks of Dreamliner 1 though it is not known yet when the other 4 test flight airplanes will be ready to fly or in what order.

As far as intangibles, people I've talked to feel that there is a huge amount of optimism at Everett with the 787. One very knowledgeable industry watcher told me:

"Yes, there’s an optimism there I haven’t seen since 777 days again – no
doubt about it. Now they’ve started to discover the 787’s “little ways” (ie –
how different it is to test an aircraft with fully-integrated avionics/systems),
I think they’re feeling a lot better."

There are several sources for all this information so here are the link and enjoy the very informative read:

Guy Norris' 8th report

Guy Norris' 9th report

Flightblogger report

Seattle Times Report

Airwise Report

Seattle Post Intelligencer

787: Boeing flight test update

Well I'm gleaning news from a few different sources but Boeing released a lot of information on the upcoming flight test program for the 787.

One major take away: Boeing still is sticking with first flight by the end of June, 2009.

First let's see how the work is divided up between the 6 test flight airplanes (this is from Guy Norris' article):

ZA001: aerodynamics and handling characteristics, flutter, stability and controls, low speed testing, check out of the full data system, major systems integration work and check out.

ZA002: test stability and control, autopilot, avionics, propulsion and electric systems.

ZA003: tests of electro-magnetic/high-intensity radiated fields (EME/HIRF), systems, noise, flight deck, ETOPS, avionics and minimum data system.

ZA004: high speed aerodynamic performance, community noise, propulsion, ETOPS and flight loads survey

ZA005: repeat some flutter work because it is the first GEnx-1B powered version, as well as performing stability and control, aerodynamic performance, propulsion, avionics, community noise and ETOPS

ZA006: lightning-specific EME tests, and HIRF, more ETOPS and miscellaneous tests with minimal analog requirements.

First Flight: Flight duration will be anywhere from 3 to 5.5 hours depending on weather and other factors. First flight will fly Dreamliner 1 from Paine Field to Boeing Field where the test flight team is based. There will be no overflight of Seattle on the first flight nor will there be a barrel roll a la 707.

Some other interesting nuggets: 60% of the required paperwork for certification has been completed and submitted to the FAA. Of the 40% remaining less than 10% is using flight test data.

The 787 will be ETOPS certified to 330 minutes and minimum of 207 non ETOPS

43 pilots and 1000 engineers and mechanics will be involved with the 787 flight testing program.

While I was not there there are plenty of media that were and here's where you can link to their reports though I'm also waiting on Jon's report:

Guy Norris (Aviation Week)

Andrea James (Seattle PI)

Everett Herald (Michelle Dunlop)

ATW Online (Aaron Karp)

Flight International (Stephen Trimble)

Flightblogger: Dreamliner 1's power hiccup

Jon Ostrower just put up a post relating what happened with the electrical system during the gear swing test. Boeing engineers are still conducting analysis of the issue which occurred when power was switched from ground power to internal power and the aircraft systems unexpectedly shut down.

You can read Jon's entry here.

Also Dreamliner 1 looks like it'll be outside by Tuesday morning in spot 104 on the Boeing flightline after getting a bit of paint touched up. Jon also reported that there is a "bread truck" at the spot on the flightline.

June 19th possible first flight date?

A source has told me that June 19th might be the date for first flight of the 787. This is only a possible date whereas another source told me he heard that mentioned as a date but that it keeps changing...daily.

This date has to be taken with a grain of salt as it is unconfirmed and subject to change given the progress with 787 testing.

Also intermediate gauntlet testing should get underway sometime in May though I'm not sure when in May.

Guy Norris: Dreamliner 1 moved out of the hanger...into the paint hanger!!

UPDATE: The reason for the move into the paint hanger is for a final aqueous wash of the fuel tanks prior to fuelling the airplane. I am thinking that the airplane will come out by Wednesday morning (April 29th) and start intermediate gauntlet testing sometime this weekend. Pending Boeing's investigation in to the electrical issue that occured during thegear swing test, the intermediate gauntlet can move up or back.

Guy Norris posted part 7 on his road to 787 first flight series and here he reports that Dreamliner 1 was indeed moved out of the 767 assembly hanger at 4 AM local time this morning...and into the Boeing paint hanger. The aircraft already received a touch up paint job in March so why it moved into the paint hanger again instead of the flight line is a mystery.

That being said, I'm confident that if there was a major issue with the electrical system, Boeing would have kept this airplane in building 40-24. Guy also reported that ground vibration testing is going well on ZA002 with no issues cropping up.

You can read Guy's report here.

Guy Norris: Possible snag in Dreamliner 1 test

Guy Norris is reporting that there may be a possible snag for the 787 testing. Guy said that the landing gear swing tests went well however there was an unexpected electrical systems problem. Boeing was going to perform a special electrical systems test to troubleshoot the problem but that test has been put on hold indefinitely.

Guy does not know if this will effect the rest of the test program or the date for first flight.

Stay tuned.

Read Guy's posting here.

Flightblogger has picked up the story though nothing new yet to report. Read Jon's posting here.

Flightblogger: Dreamliner 1 conducts gear swing tests last night

UPDATE: I'm hearing that Dreamliner 1 could be out on the flightline as early 10pm-11pm local time on Sunday night (April 26th). Also Dreamliner 2 should be flying within weeks after Dreamliner 1 goes up. I'm still maintaining my bet that Boeing can have Dreamliner 1 up in the Air by May 31st but let's see how the rest of gauntlet testing goes in May.

According to a posting by Jon Ostrower this morning, Dreamliner 1 (ZA001) conducted the final landing gear swing tests late last night inside building 40-24. Boeing should have also carried out the ground vibration testing very early this morning on ZA002. ZA001 should be out on the Boeing flightline when the sun comes up over Everett on Monday morning. Plane spotters in Everett, get your cameras late Sunday night/early Monday morning!

My guess is that intermediate gauntlet testing should start on Tuesday at the earliest.

Read Jon's posting here.

Guy Norris: Ground Vibration Tests to start tonight(Friday Night)

Guy Norris posted a brief update saying that ground vibration testing on ZA002 is due to start tonight. Also Boeing is preparing for the gear swing tests on ZA001 which requires loading ballast weights back on the aircraft as well as re-rigging the gear and gear doors. Read Guy's posting here.

Flightblogger and Guy Norris report more progress towards 787 first flight

A huge amount of work has been done on the path to first flight since the end of the factory gauntlet.

Jon Ostrower reported that the Boeing tested the wings on the static test airframe to over 100% of the wing limit load. The limit load test is to test the wings to 100% of the loads that it would ever experience in flight. Boeing tested it 120% - 130% of those loads, far exceeding the requirement necessary to proceed to first flight. This amounted to a wing tip deflection of about 17 ft. This was the final test required on the airframe prior to first flight. Later after the test flight program is well underway, Boeing is required, for certification purposes, to test the wings to 150% of the limit load. This is the ultimate load test.

Read Jon's posting here.

Guy Norris reported that landing gear tests will take place this weekend but that flight control operating tests will be done by test pilots on Wednesday, April 22. This involves the movement of the flight control surfaces and testing of the mechanical and electrical linkages of those surfaces that are connected to the flight deck. Guy Norris said the successful completion of these test will allow Dreamliner 1 to move on to the next gauntlet test, the intermediate gauntlet.

Finally, Guy also reported that ZA002 finished up HIRF (high intensity radiated field)/electro-magnetic interference testing on Tuesday (April 21) and will now be readied for ground vibration testing on Saturday.

Read Guy's posting here.

Can Boeing fly the 787 before the end of May?

I had an interesting discussion with a very knowledgeable industry journalist and we were discussing the prospects of Boeing flying the 787 by the end of May. This journalist told me he thinks Boeing can have Dreamliner 1 flying by the end of May (a well known aerospace analyst told me he thinks first flight will be in the 3rd quarter) and another leading and well known industry watcher concurs with the end of May time frame is possible if Boeing continues to have the same kind of success with the rest of the ground testing program it enjoyed with the factory gauntlet.


This brings up an interesting question and analysis of this question. I think Boeing can pull it off given the successful completion of the factory gauntlet (this is just a discussion piece based on my guesswork and estimates, nothing here came from Boeing or any sources). Here's how:


The 787 is pulled out of building 40-24 this week and is prepped for the start of intermediate gauntlet. Intermediate gauntlet starts next Monday (April 27th) and is completed latest by May 1st. If the test data is clear then the Final gauntlet starts around May 4th and in completed around May 15th including test data evaluation. Next comes the fun part with hot fire, taxi test, braking tests, V1 (rejected takeoff) over the next two weeks after that and then the big take off run to history!

Doable, but I'm still adding a couple more weeks for any issues or funnies to crop up and get fixed. That could take us to just before Paris Air Show time.

Flightblogger: Dreamliner 1 may make an appearance on flightline tonight

Jon Ostrower is reporting on his blog that Boeing is confirming the successful completion of the factory gauntlet as confirming that final gear swing tests are taking place and after that should be cleared to be pulled out to the flightline as early as tonight (Tuesday night). Jon reported on Guy Norris' post that reveal the successful completion of the factory gauntlet.

This would be a successful milestone as Dreamliner 1 wouldn't return to the hanger until after the flight test program is completed (barring any unknown unknown problems that may crop up). On the flightline Boeing is expected to continue gauntlet testing leading to Hot Fire tests, Taxi/Breaking Tests and first flight. The dates for all these are still unknown.

Finally, Jon also is reporting that ground vibration testing is going to start soon (I had earlier reported that ground vibration testing is close to being completed), perhaps as early as tomorrow followed by the HIRF and electro-magnetic interference tests.

Read Jon's report here.

Also Guy Norris has written a great article on testing progress to date and the process going forward. Read his article for Aviation Week here.

Boeing produces first 747-8F wings

Image Courtesy of Boeing

Boeing announced today that they produced the first set of wings for the newest member of the 747 family, the 747-8F. Boeing is just finishing up the last 747-400ERF airplane and is well into the production of the 747-8 series.

The first 747-8F is expected to rollout and have first flight later this fall with EIS in the third quarter of 2010.

Here is Boeing's press release:

EVERETT, Wash., April 21, 2009 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has completed major assembly of the first set of wings for the 747-8 Freighter. The new 135-foot 3-inch (41.2 m) wings incorporate the latest aerodynamic technologies to fly farther and more efficiently. The advanced airfoil provides improved overall performance and greater fuel capacity.

The Boeing 747-8 Freighter and Intercontinental are the new high-capacity 747s that offer airlines the lowest operating costs and best economics of any large passenger or freighter airplane, while providing enhanced environmental performance.

Guy Norris: Factory Gauntlet completed ahead of schedule

Guy Norris over at Aviation week just reported that the factory gauntlet was completed ahead of schedule. Boeing is now moving on to the pre-intermediate gauntlet test activities which include landing gear retraction tests.

The flight test team will test the retraction of the landing gear inside building 40-24 to make sure there are no surprises when Dreamliner 1 finally takes to the air. To do this the aircraft will be jacked up off its landing gear so the test can take place. Once outside the landing gear can't be tested until the plane flies so the flight test team will test it and make sure that there are no issues.

I think Dreamliner 1 should be outside by the end of the week.

You can read Guy's posting here.

Lastly, Matt Cawby is reporting that vibration testing is almost complete on Dreamliner 2 and that High Instensity Radiated Fields (HIRF) testing is up next for Dreamliner 2. See it here.

Flightblogger: Factory gauntlet begins at 6:30AM PT on April 20th

UPDATE (April 20, 2009, 3:16PM): Boeing has confirmed to Flightblogger that the factory gauntlet has indeed started and should finish by tomorrow morning. An external computer has been hooked up to Dreamliner 1 to test how the airplane "flies." Read Jon's post here.


According to Jon Ostrower, ZA001 will start the first of three gauntlet tests this morning at around 6:30 AM PT. It is expected that this gauntlet should be done by early morning on April 21st thus paving the way for ZA001 to be moved to the flightline.

Jon also confirmed that the flight test wiring is mostly connected and all the external panels have been reinstalled.

Boeing is also getting an accurate measurement of the 787 OEW (operating empty weight) by removing the ballast and weighing the aircraft. It's not known what the result was but it is widely expected to be over the contractual weight.

Jon also reported that the rear fuselage section that was just delivered for ZA100 (Dreamliner 7) was 96% complete. Read Jon's post here.

As I reported on this blog earlier, it is expected that all traveled work in the 787 program will be eliminated starting with Dreamliner 8 (ZA101).

Lastly, Matt Cawby on his photoblog reported that Dreamliner 1 completed engine and APU fire protection systems tests in both the ground and air modes. See Matt's posting here.

Guy Norris: 787 factory gauntlet to start on April 20th

UPDATE, 9:05 PM, Sunday April 18, 2009: The LCF arrived today in Everett delivering the first fuselage section (rear fuselage sections 47/48) from ZA100, the first production standard 787. Matt Cawby got a great picture of the section being offloaded the LCF at Paine Field. Click HERE to see the picture.

According to Guy Norris at Aviation Week, the factory gauntlet test is planned to start on April 20th and should finish in the early morning of April 21st. The final software system integration test was passed on April 17th allowing for Dreamliner 1 to proceed with the start of the final systems checkout (on Sunday April 19th) and on to the start of factory gauntlet on the 20th. Guy reported that Dreamliner 1 will be put through 2 set of test during factory gauntlet each lasting 10 hours each.

Also on tap is the testing of the flight test instrumentation system that is on baord the 787 and will be recording all the test parameters during the flight test program. Major systems checkout is also being performed as well as inspection of the flight control surfaces and checking the trim on those surfaces as well as the doors and panels.

In my estimation, Dreamliner 1 can be out on the flight line as early as April 22nd which also happens to be the day that Boeing reports 1st quarter earnings. There will be an earning conference call during which I expect some general news about the 787 schedule to be revealed by Jim MeNerney.

Read Guy's posting here.

Guy Norris: 787 activities picking up

Guy Norris, who write for Aviation Week and has a blog called "Things with Wings" recently posted the first part of his 787 update.

In it he reports that activities around ZA 001 are picking up pace ahead of the start of the factory gauntlet. The aircraft's ballast tanks for flight test were loaded with water. This allows the airplane to simulate passenger and cargo loads as well as shifting centers of gravity on the airplane during flight.

Read Guy's posting here. It's quite informative.

Flightblogger: Gauntlet Testing pushed out a week

Jon posted today that gauntlet testing has slipped with the factory gauntlet now scheduled for about a week later than originally planned. The reaon is to realign the shop completion date with the start of gauntlet testing. This will also be the date that the manufacturing team will hand over Dreamliner 1 (ZA001) to the flight test team. When this date is is unclear.

Jon also reported that ZA002 is close to starting ground vibration testing though that date is unclear as well.

Read Jon's report here.

In other 787 news, Gulf Air firmed up the conversion of 8 787 options that it held to a firm order. Gulf Air initial order was for 16 787-8 plus 8 options. With exercising these options, which Gulf Air had stated their intention to do a few months ago, Gulf now has 24 firm 787 on order and Boeing has 886 firm 787s that they have to deliver.

Flightblogger: Still waiting for gauntlet testing to start

Jon Ostrower is reporting that the factory gauntlet, widely expected to have started by now, has not yet started. It may start by the end of this week. As a consequence, the rollout of Dreamliner 1 probably won't occur until the end of April now.

Also the wings for LN 7 (now ZA100 as Boeing changed the internal designation of the production standard aircraft) have arrived into Everett last night and the rear fuselage should be in by the end of this week. Dreamliner 7 will be the first 787 delivered to launch customer ANA. I suspect that it'll take a month for this airplane to get outside to the flightline because of the three airplanes (ZA004, ZA005, and ZA006) that will be in front of it. Matt Cawby got a great picture of the wings being offloaded the LCF at Everett. Click here for the picture. Click here for Jon's post.

Aviation Week: Trent 1000 getting closer to spec

Jon Ostrower reported on an article in Aviation Week that Rolls Royce is closer to getting the Trent 1000 engines closer to its original fuel consumption specs.

The improvement won't show up until later this year when ZA004 will be outfitted with the improved engines. The production ready motors will be installed on the 12th 787 (ZA105 or the 6th production standard 787).

Read Jon's article here.

Flightblogger: Boeing shuffles 787 deliveries

Huge news broke by Jon Ostrower. It looks like that ANA will be receiving 11 787s in the first 3 months when deliveries start in Feb. 2010. It seems that the Chinese carriers are not taking 787 deliveries for now. They have been complaining that the 787-8 is falling short of their expectations.

Jon is also reporting that Delta will not be taking up it early deliveries though all these carriers still have their orders intact. It seems they're going for the later deliveries far upstream. Boeing has indicated that the first 20 aircraft built will be overweight and the aircraft thereafter should meet weight specs that were originally promised and contracted for.

Lastly Jon reports that the 6 test aircraft have not been allocated to any customer even though Boeing previously said that ZA001 and ZA002 will go to ANA, ZA003 and ZA004 will go to Delta, and ZA005 and ZA006 will go to Royal Air Maroc. It seems that this not going to be done but will be allocated to carriers after they have been refurbished. Read Jon's story here.

Flightblogger: 787 preps for factory gauntlet

Jon Ostrower got another detail filled post out not too long ago. In it he confirmed what I posted with regards to the the factory gauntlet: factory gauntlet will start in about 10 days around April 10th) and should take 2 to 3 days after which it will be rolled out to the flightline.

The intermediate gauntlet will occur in mid-May soon after ZA002 (Dreamliner 2) joins ZA001 out on the flight line. while ZY998 the fatigue airframe will go back to the factory (though I'm not sure if it'll go to the 787 (40-26 building) line or the 767 line (40-24 building)) for continued structural re-work. My guess is it'll go to 40-24 so as not to interfere with 787 production.

ZY997 the fatigues test air frame is under going a quality assurance reconciliation before moving to the wing load limit test.

Read Jon's posting here.

Lastly, I found out that LN6 has completed wing body join.

Dreamlifter Fleet

In a rare moment photographer Matt Cawby got a nice picture of all three 747 Dreamlifter LCFs on the Boeing Ramp yesterday. There's supposed to be a 4th Dreamlifter but that is probably delayed until such time that Boeing will need it during the ramp up to full production.

Click here to see the picture.

Flightblogger: Remaining Milestones until First Flight

UPDATE: I got this description from Boeing:

Gauntlet tests in general are focused on integrated system integrity and functionality (hardware and software). The purpose of the factory gauntlet is to test most of the airplanes systems (not the engines or the APU) integrated on the airplane in a simulated flying environment. The intermediate and final gauntlet tests are more thorough and include engines and the APU. The engines will be run at various power settings during gauntlet testing. However, the pre-flight engine testing is a separate activity. We have not assigned specific time periods for these tests.

Jon Ostrower posted an article regarding the remaining series of tests and checkouts to be done before first flight of the 787. Jon cautions that it may not be a complete guide to the remaining work but it does give us an idea of the work yet to be done.

In short the remaining testing will utilize the static test frame (ZY997), Dreamliner 1 (ZA001) and Dreamliner 2 (ZA002).

Please read Jon's post here. I've summarize some of the salient points below.

Two of the required three static load tests have been completed on the static test frame. Te remaining test to be done is the wing load limit test.

Ground Vibration Test is to be performed on ZA002. This airplane will be towed to building 40-24 where this test will be undertaken. So far my estimate is that it will take place in the latter half of April assuming that Dreamliner 1 conducts factory gauntlet inside 40-24 on April 10th and is then towed out to the flightline on April 13th from building 40-24.

Gauntlet Testing - first is factory gauntlet which takes place indoors (presumably in 40-24) where the aircraft is getting power from an external cart and batteries. Most of the systems are powered and tested but not all. The APU and engines are not turned on here. The second is the intermediate gauntlet which takes place out on the flightline. Here the APU and the engines are started for the first time and some of the systems are run on internal power for the first time. The aircraft is fueled up for the first time here. Lastly the final gauntlet is where the aircraft systems are powered for eight days straight and put through simulations to test the software.

Final testing will comprise of three phases. First is the Hot Test where the engines are run up to 100%. There will also be engines runs at different power settings. Second is the slow and medium speed taxi tests. Lastly there will be the high speed taxi test followed by first flight.

I don't have dates yet but the last I heard is that factory gauntlet testing should start on April 10th followed by the move outside on April 13th. We'll see if this schedule keeps.

QANTAS might defer 787 orders

In a news story that was printed in the Sydney Morning Herald, QANTAS may have to defer or cancel part of their 787 order in order to avoid accessing capital markets in order to keep its investment grade credit rating. They have been hit hard by investment losses. Read the article here.

Dreamliner 1 News

Some information I just received though I am still trying to confirm it. Dreamliner 1 is scheduled to undergo factory gauntlet testing on April 10th. It is then scheduled to be moved out to the flightline on April 13th. I'm still trying to confirm but this would inidcate that factory gauntlet might take a couple of days. I'm not sure why th test is not scheduled to start for another 2 week but I speculate that it might be to prepare the test equipement for the factory gauntlet.

Lastly, Matt Cawby got pictures of Boeing vans setting up flight test instrumentation around Paine Field. See his pictures here and here.

Flightblogger: On the road to 787 First Flight

Jon posted a nice update on Dreamliner 1. Read it here. In it he confirms that ZA001 was moved out of the paint shop last Saturday (March 21st) back to building 40-24. He also says that ZA001 can be out on the flight line as early as next week (yesterday I said it could be out there later this week) and factory gauntlet testing (the first of three gauntlet tests) can possibly take place out on the flight line with the airplane hooked up to external power as well as using its battery.

Lastly, it seems that Bloomberg picked up on the post I put up yesterday. Click here.

Mt Redoubt blows its top: possible implications for 787 assembly?

RELATED UPDATE: Boeing told me that they're monitoring the sitation on Mt. Redoubt but don't expect any disruptions to their operations.

UNRELATED UPDATE: Dreamliner 1 might be making an appearance on the Boeing Everett flight line by around Wednesday or Thursday (March 25/26) of this week.

As some of you know, Alaska's Mt. Redoubt, a volcano about a 100 miles away from Anchorage, Alaska, erupted on Sunday. Geophysicists have said that these eruptions can continue for weeks or months.

Now what does that have to do with the assembly of the 787. Plenty it turns out. Boeing dispatches the 747 Dreamlifter or LCF to Nagoya to pick up the center wing box and mid fuselage sections that are then transported to Charleston, SC for integration with other parts flown in from Italy. These parts, when assembled form the 787 main fuselage. The LCFs also fly the wing boxes (or wings) for the 787 from Nagoya to Everett for final assembly.

Because of these eruptions, Mt Redoubt is throwing up plenty of ash and dust into the atmosphere. This ash and dust, when sucked into the engines of commercial aircraft, can flame out the engines which has happened with a 747 flying through a previous eruption many years ago (fortunately the pilots were able to restart engines before the plane would have crashed). This eruption can and will disrupt air traffic flying into and out of Anchorage, AK. When the LCFs are flying with these heavy sections and wings on their way to the US, they have to have a refueling stop in Anchorage. If Anchorage is shut down or if the dust and ash cloud prevents commercial aircraft from operating near Anchorage (which is on major commercial routes), then the LCF flights can be delayed or perhaps stopped from traveling from Japan to the US.

Note that when the LCFs are empty, they can fly a more southerly route and don't need a refueling stop on its way to Japan from the US. We just have to wait and see how this could effect Boeing in the near term as they attempt to increase 787 production.

Boeing announces the start of final assembly on Dreamliner 6

Pictures Courtesy of Boeing

Boeing started the final assembly of Dreamliner 6 according to a press release:

EVERETT, Wash., March 19, 2009 - The sixth and final Boeing [NYSE: BA] 787 Dreamliner designated for flight test is now undergoing final assembly in Everett, Wash. The airplane, designated ZA006, will be powered with General Electric GEnx engines. Progress continues on the fleet. The first flight test airplane, ZA001, is getting its paint touched up this week before finishing factory testing. Power was brought onto the second airplane, ZA002, in late February and build verification tests are progressing well. Production work continues on ZA003, ZA004 and ZA005. In all, assemblies for 31 Dreamliners are currently in production throughout the supply chain. The 787 Dreamliner has orders for 878 airplanes from 57 customers.

The thing to note that power has been turned on on Dremaliner 2 (ZA002) which is an important milestone as that airplane is need to perform ground vibration testing prior to first flight. ZA001 is finishing up painting and then will proceed with factory gauntlet testing in building 40-24 (767 line). After that it should have intermediate gauntlet testing done out on the Everett flight line. I anticipate, barring any issues that may arise with the factory gauntlet, that ZA001 should be on the flight line by mid to late April.

According to Flightblogger in a posting today, parts for Dreamliner 7 will start arriving this week starting with the horizontal stabilizer. I believe Dreamliner 7 wil start final assembly around late April to early May. This will be the first production airplane which is a big deal for this program. Dreamliner 2 will start ground vibrations testing next week.

By the way, Randy Tinseth has a great entry on his blog at Boeing with an additional picture. Read it here.

787 line moved on Friday (March 13)

Boeing moved the 787 line on Friday March 13th.). Dreamliner 3 was moved out of the line to building 40-22 (747 line) where it will continue assembly thus moving Dreamliner 4 and Dreamliner 5 down one spot and making room for Dreamliner 6 to start final assembly on Monday March 16th in position 1. Dreamliner 2 will remain it is current spot in position 4 in building 40-26

The final section for that airplane, the main center fuselage is being flown tonight to Everett from Global Aeronautica on the Dreamlifter. Track the LCF flight here.

787 Production Progress: Vought bringing back some workers in Charleston, SC

In another sign of production progress, Vought is bringing back some of the laid off workers at the Charleston, SC plant where the rear fuselage is produced. These workers were laid off due to the IAM strike and are now being recalled to help support the increase in production of the rear fuselage sections for the 787.

Read the article here.

Near term 787 dates

I just got some new information on some near term 787 goals (near term, meaning over the next week). I got confirmation that the forward fuselage for Dreamliner 6 (ZA006) was delivered into Everett last night on the Dreamlifter. That leaves the main fuselage to be delivered. That part should arrive from Global Aeronautica in Charleston, SC on March 13th (this Friday).

The line move that was supposed to occur on March 8th is now slated to occur on March 14-15th.

After that the parts for Dreamliner 6 will be moved into position 1 on the 787 line around March 16th to start final assembly.

Lastly, AF-KLM has announced that they will decide between the 787 and the A350 by the end of 2009 or early 2010. If Airbus doesn't get GE to sign on to the A350 then the odds are in favor of the 787 getting the nod.

Dreamliner 1 moved to paint shop

Dreamliner 1 entering the Boeing paint shop in Everett on March 10, 2009
Thanks to Tony for permission to use this picture.

After almost two years of disassembly and reassembly, Dreamliner 1 made the short trip to Boeing's paint shop for repainting and its aqueous tank wash. This should be the last few steps prior to the aircraft being turned over to the flight test division to start gauntlet testing leading to first flight (in about 10 days according to Jon Ostrower in his latest blog post). Since Scott Carson pronounced Dreamliner 1 "essentially" factory complete there might be some small assembly tasks remaining as the aircraft goes through ground testing and gauntlet tests.

The gauntlet tests will be driven not be schedule but by accomplishing each milestone before proceeding to the next test. I anticipate that gauntlet testing should take about 2 months. During that time Dreamliner 2 should complete ground vibration testing and the static test airframe should complete the required load testing prior to first flight.

Now that Dreamliner 1 has moved on I anticipate that the 787 line move should occur either today or tomorrow. It was supposed to occur on March 8th but was delayed. in conjuntion with this line move I also anticipate that final assembly on Dreamliner 6 should start late this week or this weekend. The forward fuselage for this aircraft may have been delivered yesterday but I am still trying to get confirmation on this. Saj over at Fleetbuzzeditorial.com also put out a post describing the upcoming 787 milestones. Read his blog post here.

Dreamliner 6 forward fuselage

The Dreamliner is flying today from Charleston, SC to Wichita today and then later on to Paine Field in Everett. It's my thought that it might be carrying the forward fuselage for Dreamliner 6 (LN 6) to Everett today.

The only way to confirm this is to have someone let me know if the section is actually unloaded at Everett today.

See the Flightaware track.

Scott Carson: Dreamliner 1 factory complete

Scott Carson was speaking at the JP Morgan Aviation conference reaffirmed Boeing's 787 schedule for first flight as by the end of the 2nd quarter this year and first delivery for the end of the 1st quarter of 2010.

He also said that Dreamliner 1 is essentially factory complete and will be going to the paint shop soon.

He said, "We have cleared all the equipment for first flight."

After painting Dreamliner 1 will go through the three gauntlet tests which also includes engines run ups and taxi tests.

Read a news report here. Also read a post by Flightblogger here.

UPDATE: In somewhat related news, Delta stated in the earnings release that the 787s they have on order are still a firm order and that they are anxious to take delivery of the 787s. Change of mind in Atlanta.

Flightblogger 787 Program Update Part 2

Jon Ostrower posted the 2nd part of his 787 program update. This part deals with the start of assembly of production standard aircraft, the first of which is destined for ANA.

Read Jon's blog post here.

Additionally Innovation Analysis Group has released a podcast detailing the progress of the 787 program. Listen to it here.

Flightblogger 787 Update for March 2009

Jon Ostrower just put out the first of two parts of a 787 Update.

He confirms an upcoming line move for the 787 that was reported here earlier. The main difference is that LN 3 (ZA003) will be moved out of the assembly hall in 40-26 and being sent to the 747 assembly line in building 40-23. ZA 001 (LN 1) should be making its way to the paint hanger within the next one week to 10 days after it undergoes the medium blow pressure test. The fact that Dreamliner 1 will soon be going over to the paint shop strongly suggests that this aircraft is factory complete. I believe that after painting, Dreamliner 1 will have it's fuel tanks undergo the aqueous wash before moving on to gauntlet testing.

Dreamliner 2 will be staying inside 40-26 undergoing completion and goes through power on after the line move. Jon says that Boeing is shifting it's emphasis to getting Dreamliner 1, Dreamliner 2, and Dreamliner 5 out the door and flying.

Jon is also reporting that first flight is still to be determined but feels that it occur by the end of June, 2009 though time margins are shrinking. The required gauntlet testing has been pushed out to early April.

Read Jon's article here.

Aviation Week: Delta not to take early 787

According to Aviation Week, Delta Airlines appears to be walking away from the inital 787s that was part of the order made by Northwest Airlines. Looking at annual report for Delta Airlines, the 787 were deleted from the firm order count though the order still is on the books at Boeing.

It is quite possible that Delta would trade them for more 777s and take later 787 slots. This would also help free up early delivery slots for customers affected by the delays in the 787.

Read the Av Week article here.

New 787 Update

I just got word on some upcoming 787 activity. On March 8th there will be a line move with LN 2 finally moving out of building 40-26 and going into building 40-24. LN 1 should be moving around that time to the paint shop as well though I have yet to get a date on that.

The two remaining fuselage sections for LN 6 (ZA006), which is the final test flight aircraft and the second 787 to be powered by the GEnx engines, should arrive around the 8th or the 9th of March. Final assembly should start on March 10th and in the case of this airplane the join should only take a few days in total. This indicates that LN 6 will arrive with significantly reduced traveled work to be done.

Lastly, LN 3 (ZA 003) will get it RR Trent 1000 engines either today (March 2nd) or on Tomorrow (March 3rd).

787-10 and 787 weight issues

Daniel Tsang who writes for Airways Aviation News, posted a great article on the 787-10 but revealed some interesting tid bits on Boeing's weight reduction efforts. Namely ZA020 (Dreamliner 20) will be at the promised weight while the previous 19 airplanes will be less than 4 tons overweight.

Read his article here.

Fleetbuzzeditorial.com 787 update part 2 and part 3

Here's the second part of Saj's 787 Program Review. Click here.

You can read the third and final part of his review here.

Flightblogger: 787 FAL Picture

Picture Courtesy of Boeing

Flightblogger got a great picture on the blog of the 787 final assembly line as of a week ago. Click here to see it!

UPDATE: I got further confirmation that Boeing is still planning to power on LN 2 later this week and move the aircraft to 40-24 within the next two weeks. The word on LN 1 is that it's still being worked on in building 40-24 with numerous access panels still opened. Inside building 40-24 there is a 767, 787 (LN 1) and a 777F having it's cargo door rigged (all 777Fs are having their cargo doors rigged in building 40-24 for now). LN 2 has to move out to 40-24 before the remaining parts for LN 6 are delivered. That means that either LN 1 has to move out (presumably to the paint shop) or the 777F will have to the flight line.

787 Progress Review

Saj Ahmad over at Fleetbuzzeditorial.com wrote a great review of the 787 program on his web stie. Read it here. The article is in two parts with part 2 coming out next week.

It's all about the numbers

Yesterday Airbus announced that they're cutting back on their production output for the A320 and A330/A340. The A320 cut is from 36/month to 34/month and the A330/A340 production will be maintained at 8.5/month.

Now comes this insightful piece of analysis done by Saj Ahmad of fleetbuzzeditorial.com that basically claims that the numbers that Airbus released yesterday isall smoke and mirrors.

The main point...Airbus is already producing A320s at about 32/month based on last years' actual deliveries of A320s and the A330/A340 at 7/month.

Read Saj's analysis here.

Dreamliner 2 to move within weeks

I got word from independent sources that Dreamliner 2 is to be moved out of the 787 final assembly building as early as Feb. 27th but may take place as late as March 6th. The move will take this airplane to building 40-24 to complete assembly tasks. The move will allow the final assembly to start on Dreamliner 6 whose parts have already started to flow into Everett.

Additionally, power on for Dreamliner 2 is scheduled for around the end of this week though that may take place by Feb. 27th.

Rear fuselage for Dreamliner 6 heading to Everett?

UPDATE: I got confirmation that the rear fuselage for Dreamliner 6 is on board the Dreamlifter.

A Boeing Dreamlifter is flying to Everett this morning possibly carrying the rear fuselage for Dreamliner 6. It should arrive by about 3:15PM EST. I hope to have some confirmation a little later.

ATW's Geoffrey Thomas gives update on 787

A great short article on where the 787 program is and it's immediate future. Here's a summary:

ZA002 - Fastener rework should be completed by this weekend and power on should be in about 10 days.
ZA003 and ZA004 - fastener rework is on going.
ZA005 - still in fuselage-wing join.
ZA006 - Wings arrived totally completed and painted. As reported here the tail feathers arrived last week (the horizontal stabilizers). Fuselage sections should arrive by Feb. 27th with no open issues when they arrive in Everett. The rear fuselage could arrive by the end of this week.
ZY997 (static test airframe) - fastener rework should be completed next week and wing load test will restart immediately. That should take about two months to perform.
ZY998 (fatigue test frame) - Should be turned over for the start of fatigue testing on June 1st.
Geoffrey also says that Boeing's internal target for first flight is the last week of April.

Read Geoffrey's article here.

FAA loosening lighting protection standards, helps 787

A great article by Dominic Gates of the Seattle Times. In it he states that the FAA is quietly loosening standards governing lighting protection around the fuel tanks. It was the TWA 800 crash that bought about the revised standards in 2001. How it looks like the FAA is backtracking on those. The 787 will benefit from these revised standards.

Read the article here.

Another 787 cancellation

LCAL calcelled most of it's 787 order that they had placed over the last few years. They cited the current world economic recession and future economic uncertainty as the cause. Prior to the cancellation LCAL had orders 9 787-9 and 12 787-8. They cancelled all the -9 and 7 of the -8s.

While this is a poor turn of events for Boeing, LCAL did have some early delivery slots thus Boeing might be able to mitigate some of the delays with other airlines. Clearly, in this environment new orders are going to be very hard to come by, but if Boeing can hold on to many of their "blue chip" customers, then they can be in a good position to weather the storm.

At the end of the day Boeing needs to get the 787 into the air along with the other 5 test airplanes.

A bit of good news for the program, an LCF flew in today from Grottaglie, Italy. I believed it was carrying the horizontal stabilizer for airplane #6.

Pictures of Dreamliner 1 and Dreamliner 2

Click this link to see the other pictures.

All Pictures Courtesy of http://www.fleetbuzzeditorial.com/

Picture is Copyrighted Fleetbuzz Editorial


Saj Ahmad of fleetbuzzeditorial.com released a few great pictures today on his website, Fleetbuzzeditorial.com. the pictures showed Dreamliner 2 with it's engines newly installed as well as with a lot of scaffolding around the aircraft. There was also a picture of Dreamliner in the 767 assembly hall. It appears that Dreamliner 1 still needs to have it's wing-fuselage fairing attached. The pictures were taken last week.

Improving 787 build time

As to be expected, the assembly times for each successive 787 is getting better. How do we know this? I take a look at the date that each Dreamliner (1-5) started it's final assembly and figured out the number of days it took to reach it's projected first flight based on Boeing estimates of Dreamliner 2-6 entering the test flight program in four months of the first flight. I also projected the number of days it would take Dreamliner 6 to go from start of final assembly to it's first flight. Now of course the airplanes would be shop complete well before first flight but this is to merely illustrate the improved final assembly time between LN 1 and LN 6.

Here's how it stacked up:

Dreamliner 1: Start Final Assembly on May 21, 2007, projected first flight date is April 24th, 2009. This is 704 days.

Dreamliner 2: Start Final Assembly on Feb. 14, 2008, projected first flight date is May 19th, 2009 (Three and a half weeks after Dreamliner 1 flies). This is 460 days.

Dreamliner 3: Start Final Assembly on May 1, 2008, projected first flight date is June 13, 2009 (Three and a half weeks after Dreamliner 2 flies). This is 408 days.

Dreamliner 4: Start Final Assembly on August 6, 2009, projected first flight date is July 8, 2009 (Three and half weeks after Dreamliner 3 flies). This is 336 days.

Dreamliner 5: Start Final Assembly on January 29, 2009, projected first flight date is August 2, 2009 (Three and a half weeks after Dreamliner 4 flies). This is 185 days.

Dreamliner 6: Projected start of Final Assembly on March 5th, 2009, projected first flight date is August 27, 2009 (Three and a half weeks after Dreamliner 5 flies). This is 175 days.

Dreamliner 2 should be ready to move out of building 40-26 by the end of February thus clearing way for Dreamliner 6 to enter final assembly in early March.

There is a huge improvement between Dreamliner 4 and Dreamliner 5 of about 151 days which is attributable to the improvement is the partners efforts to reduce the traveled work especially during the strike.

787 production resumes

Picture Courtesy of Boeing

Dreamliner 5 shown loaded in position 1

Boeing released a statement saying that 787 production has resumed. They also said that fastener rework is done on Dreamliner 1, almost complete on Dreamliner 2 and is still on going on Dreamliners 3 and 4. Boeing released an image, taken yesterday (Jan. 29), above showing the forward fuselage and the main fuselage section along with the wings in the position 1 tooling. The rear section has to be attached but I suspect that it'll be done by the end of this weekend.

Here's the text of the Boeing Press Release:

Production Resumes on Boeing 787 Dreamliners With Fifth Flight-Test Airplane

EVERETT, Wash., Jan. 30, 2009 -- Production of Boeing [NYSE: BA] 787 Dreamliners resumed yesterday with the join of the fifth airplane designated for flight test.

This airplane, designated ZA005, is the first to be powered with General Electric GEnx engines. The major assemblies were loaded in final body join over the past several days. The fuselage and wing joins occur simultaneously.

"This airplane signifies our return to a steady production rhythm," said Jack Jones, vice president of 787 Final Assembly and Change Incorporation.

"Sections are arriving in Everett at the completion levels committed by our partners and close to what is expected for mature production," Jones said. "The substantial progress made by our partners streamlines the assembly process, which is essential as we ramp up production."

Five of the six airplanes designated for flight test are now in varying stages of production. Power was restored earlier this week to the first flight-test airplane, ZA001, and production testing has resumed as the airplane prepares for first flight in the second quarter. Rolls-Royce engines are hung on ZA002, in the fourth and final production position in the factory. The third and fourth flight-test airplanes, ZA003 and ZA004, are in the third and second production positions, respectively.

Fastener rework is done on ZA001, nearly complete on ZA002 and progressing well on the third and fourth airplanes, Jones said. "We have applied the resources necessary to complete all the outstanding work on these airplanes and keep the production line moving forward."

Assemblies for the final flight-test airplane, ZA006, are in production at partner sites worldwide. In all, assemblies for 30 Dreamliners are in production at this time.

The 787 Dreamliner has orders for 895 airplanes from 58 airlines.

Dreamliner 1 powered on again.

Dreamliner 1 has been powered on again to retest systems that have been powered down since tbefore the strike.

Boeing posts 787 order cancellation

UPDATE: James Wallace at the Seattle PI reported that the customer who cancelled the 787 order was S7 of Russia. It was due to the economic climate and not the delays on the program.

Also Jon Ostrower reported that first flight of LN 2 can come as early as May which is 3 months earlier than I reported a month ago. Jon also reported that all 6 test airplanes can be flying within 4 months of first flight. Presumably if first flight occurs in late April then all 6 could be flying by the end of August. I still have my doubts about certification by the end of January 2010 but we'll see. Read Jon's report here.

Boeing, in it's financial statements said that they have booked a cancellation of 15 787s. The customer is unknown but could be Virgin Atlantic or an unknown customer. We'll probably know in about two weeks when Boeing releases it's monthly order and delivery totals.

"The 787 program has won 895 net orders from 58 customers to date, which
includes the recent removal from the books of one customer’s order for airplanes that were scheduled for delivery late in the next decade."

Ares 1-Y CGM Launch Video

Ok a little off topic but here's a cool video of the planned launch of NASA's ARES 1-Y test flight. Here it will use an acutal 5 segment SRB derived from the shuttle solid rocket motor as well as an actual 2nd stage but a dummy second stage engine and a dummy Orion capsule. The Launch Abort System tower (LAS tower) is real and NASA wants to test the high altitude capability of the LAS Tower to pull the Orion off the "stick" in case of an emergency. The test launch is planned for September 2013 and will not carry any astronauts.

Flightblogger: Dreamliner 1 through 6 Update

LN 1 in building 40-24 taken by Saj Ahmad 4 days ago.

Used with permission from Fleetbuzzeditorial.com

Jon Ostrower has posted a detailed update on 787 line numbers 1 through 6. Read it here.

Here's a summary:

LN 1 (Dreamliner 1): Set to be powered on again very soon. Will go through a "medium blow" pressurization test in early February. The engines nacelles cowlings have been reinstalled as well as the remaining control surfaces. As I reported earlier, Boeing has thrown a lot of resources at LN 1 and Boeing is leaving on some of the temporary fasteners for the duration of the testing program. This decision has saved a lot of time. Speaking of which the time frame for first flight looks to be shifting to the right a bit with some milestones now being classified as TBD. This includes first flight which was thought to be around the April 20th to April 24th time frame.

LN 2 (Dreamliner 2) : Dreamliner 2 had its engines and all flaps installed and work continues to center on finishing up fastener replacement. Jon is also reporting that power on should happen soon followed by the start of ground vibration testing in mid-March.

LN 3 (Dreamliner 3): Dreamliner 3 is on it's legs (landing gear) and has its engine pylons on.

LN 4 (Dreamliner 4): Dreamliner 4 is about to get its legs. This airplane, probably because it's in more complete shape, has a low priority in terms of resources.

LN 5 (Dreamliner 5): Dreamliner 5 is about to start final assembly. The main fuselage section is undergoing some traveled work installation prior to being sent into position 1 on the final assembly line. Section 41 arrived 100% complete and the rear fuselage arrived 95% complete. The pylons for the GEnx engines have been installed on the wings. This aircraft has arrived in a more complete state than the previous aircraft.

LN 6 (Dreamliner 6): The wings have come in and are virtually complete and have been painted as well.

ZY997 and ZY 998: The static and fatigue test airframes continue to have their fasteners replaced. for the static airframe this should be done by middle of February and thus set the stage for the resumption of static tests that are needed prior to first flight.

Gettin' Busy in the 787 Program

The 787 is getting busy through out the world. Information that I got says that there has been a tremendous amount of resources thrown at Dreamliner 1 and Dreamliner 2 to those two aircraft finished. LN 2 though as not been powered up and probably won't be until well after it is done with vibration testing.

Additionally Dreamliner 5 will start final assembly today and not tomorrow or Wedensday as I first thought. Section 41 (forward fuselage section) is already in position at the join tool and looks like the main fusealge will follow suit shortly.

Lastly, there has been an uptempo of LCF (Dreamlifter) flights. between the major partners which strongly suggests that the 787 production system is getting ramped up again. I've been tracking flight between Charleston, Nagoya and Grottaglie aswell as Everett. I'll continue to look at this trend to see how frequent the flights are and if they LCFs are making any fueling stops (In Anchorage or the UK) which indicates the presence of fuselage sections or wings that are being transported from Japan and Italy.

However, just because these is an increase in LCF flights doesn't necessarily mean that parts are being transported between sites, however it does bode well now that Dreamliner 5 will start final assembly soon.

UPDATE: Scott Hamilton has a story out on the 6 test 787 flying with temporary fasteners for the test flight program. the temporary fasteners will be replaced when the 6 airplanes undergo post test flight modifications in San Antonio. Read Scott's report here.

Dreamliner 5 to start final assembly soon

The 5th flying 787 should start final assembl by tomorrow or Wednesday at the latest now that all the major assemblies have been delivered to Boeing's Everett facility. This is another important milestone in the 787 program as this plane will be the first GEnx powered 787 and will be used to certify the GEnx powered 787.

I expect that the airplane parts arrived with about a 95% to 98% completion. I think with Dreamliner 8 we'll see no traveled work from the major tier 1 partners and improved final assembly time from Boeing.

Forward Fuselage of Dreamliner 5 heading for Everett

Looks like the forward fuselage section (section 41) for Dreamliner 5 is being shipped tonight on the LCF. Here's the flightaware alert

It's entirely possible that the main fuselage can be delivered next week and LN 5 will enter final assembly before the end of the month. The wings for LN 6 have already been delivered to Everett.

Thai Airways may buy 787-9

According to our partner Airways Aviation News, Thai Airways may purchase 14 787-9 Dreamliners instead of leasing them. Thai's board is meeting next week to discuss this purchase. Read the story here.

UPDATE (01/08/09): Boeing released it's 2008 order and delivery numbers. In December Boeing booked an order for 15 787s from an unidentified customer. It is now known that this customer ordered 15 787-9s. I'm wondering if it was Thai who placed that order?

Dreamliner 5 to start final assembly soon?

Jon Ostrower is reporting on his blog that the rear fuselage section for Dreamliner 5 will be arriving this week. That only leaves the forward fuselage and the main fuselage sections to be delivered. I'm still trying to find out when those sections will be delivered.

Also Jon reported that the pieces for the main fuselage section for Dreamliner 9 have been delivered to Global Aeronautica this past weekend to start that section's assembly and systems integration process.

UPDATE (1/12/2009): Jon Ostrower reported on his blog here, that the aft fuselage for LN 5 has arrived in Everett and that it is 95% complete. It has it fasteners repalced. Jon things the remaining two sections should be in Everett by the end of the month to start final assembly.

787 coming out

787 no. 1 will be leaving the final assembly hall for the last time for a spot in the 767 final assembly hall for about a month or so of assembly tasks and fastener repalcement tasks. Currently it is out of buidling 40-26 waiting for the the spot in 40-24 to open up (a 777 and the 787 fatigue test frame are also being moved). ZY998 will move to the flight line prior to being moved to the fatigue test area.

Also with on the card for tonight's move is the move of LN 2, LN 3, and LN4 to the spots forward of where they are. This will mean that position 1 in the 787 final assembly building (the big bang) will be free for the next 787 to enter final assembly, LN 5, or the GEnx test airframe.

I hope to link to pictures on other sites that document tonight's activities.

See here and here for Matt Cawby's pictures. She still is missings bits and pieces here and there.

Here's a FLICKR page with a lot of great pics from last night's move. And here's a video that Jon Ostrower also posted on his blog. Great details of the 787 here.


Dreamliner One Line Move from Liz Matzelle on Vimeo.

By the way, the other three 787s in building 40-26 were moved down one spot each as well. None have their engines hung as of yet.