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Aircraft manufacturer Boeing hands over the 787 Dreamliner to All Nippon Airways of Japan this week after three long years of delay. The delivery of the lightweight and fuel efficient jet took place that the Washington headquarters of Boeing with keys and contracts signed by ANA and the jet manufacturer.

The Boeing Dreamliner makes use of composite materials to chop off a lot of weight from the aircraft and also help it to be more fuel efficient than its counterparts.

The delivery is three years behind schedule which surely put a lot of issues on Boeing’s table in terms of meeting promised dates of delivery.

The aircraft manufacturer has a long list of orders at 8121 787 Dreamliners at the moment summing up to around $150 billion. The successful launch of the new aircraft is welcome by parts producers including those in the UK which follows the big chunk of the project after United States manufacturers.

The flag carrier of the Peoples Republic of China, Air China, has become the first customer from China to acquire the 747-8 Intercontinental from Boeing. The carrier closed the deal with the airplane manufacturer to purchase five unites of the fuel efficient 747-8 passenger airplanes. This agreement though is still pending while waiting for the approval of the Chinese government.

Air China has been using 747s for more than two decades now and the acquisition will add to the good flying experience of travellers.

The new 747-8 Intercontinental can carry a total of 467 passengers for its economy, business, and first class sections. The big plane also boasts of a new design for its wings and its flight deck. The airline aims to improve its efficiency, economics, and environmental performance. The new plane will also be getting its power from Genx-2B powerplants which means it will have lower emissions, have better fuel efficiency, and operate more quietly.

Boeing has its hands full with the final works on the 787 orders but they still have some time to show the public the latest version of the 747 which is the 747-8 Intercontinental that took the spotlights last weekend. The capacity of the new member of their fleet can go from 400 through 500 depending on the seat configuration of the coach seats. To date, the 747-8 is the biggest of the commercial airplanes built by Boeing.

The framework for the design of the jumbo airplane is more than four decades but vintage is not any where accurate to define the new 747 version. The jumbo jet shares DNA with its 787 sibling which means new engines, new body, new design, and new technologies in placed and implemented. The new features of the plane will improve its fuel efficiency and also reduce its emissions. The ride will also be a lot more spacious compared to the older versions.

Alas, another deal that puts commercial space travels a little closer to reality!   You’ve probably heard and read the many things we’ve written about Space Adventures, right? Yes, that company in the space travel industry that talks about their out-of-this-world (we mean this literally) summer getaways and other commercial space travel opportunities that cost twice a fortune.   Back then, it was kind of hard not to raise eyebrows at such ambitious claims.  But now, Space Adventures have just made a huge step into making all our dreams closer to reality.  They have just made a contract with the country’s major aerospace corporation, the Boeing Company, for the low orbit air travel Crew Space Transportation or CST 100.

The spacecraft is currently being engineered together with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) 2015, the Boeing spacecraft will be able to transport at least seven passengers up to low orbit, around 62 miles about the surface of the Earth.  The CST 100’s flight operation will be under Space Adventures.

The engineers at airplane manufacturer Boeing are constantly outdoing themselves. Despite having a full plate right now making planes for clients who are waiting to get their hands on their 787s, Boeing is already developing a longer, more spacious Dreamliner. The said model is being designed to fly further too.

Boeing has announced that they have completed the firm configuration of the plane’s design last July 1, 2010. The basic mechanisms of the plane are already in working order and all it takes now is to finish working with the third party companies for the different parts of the 787-9.

The 787-9 stretches 20 feet more than the Dreamliner. The additional space gives way to an extra 40 seating capacity. Although one would expect that a longer Dreamliner will result in a slower one, Boeing has mentioned that it will be flying at a maximum of 8,500 miles. Although milestones like these look easy on paper, Boeing has face a lot of design challenges with this one. An airplane this big cannot be operated merely by putting more fuselage.

Almost two dozen 787 Dreamliners are scheduled for checks after Boeing discovered issues concerning stabilizers installed in the said planes.

Apparently, the plane’s horizontal stabilizers, part of the tail assembly of the aircraft, were installed improperly. These stabilizers are responsible in making sure that the plane is leveled while it transports hundreds of passengers across the skies. While the parts in themselves may not necessarily defective, Jim Proulx, spokesman for Boeing, said this is still an issue with their supplier. Aside from that, Boeing is looking into issues in its workmanship. Alenia Aeronautica, an Italian company, furnished the parts in the Dreamliner.

Boeing has declared that it is not uncommon for airplane companies to come across problems such as these during the production phase of an aircraft. Proulx also insisted that the fleet is not grounded. That being said, however, they will now have to inspect every single plane before clearing the fleet and deeming it safe to fly.
It will take Boeing eight days to complete testing for a single aircraft. In the time given, they will also be expected to replace or fix any other malfunctioning parts.

Update: Boeing’s Dreamliner first flight video added at the end of the post

After nearly 2 years of delays, the first flight of Boeing’s much anticipated “Dreamliner” may occur as early as 10am tomorrow, Tuesday December 14. Boeing’s newest creation, the Dreamliner represents a new class of airplane, made primarily out of composite materials, thus weighing less and producing less emissions than current generation aircraft. However, the new composite material has been the cause of many delays. This potential first flight only occurred after 5 delays.

Delays have also been occurred because of Boeing’s new manufacturing process. Before, Boeing manufactured airplanes at a few locations in the US. However, they are now having worldwide subcontractors build large pieces of the plane and fitting them together later on. Of course, this has led to plenty of fitment problems as well as quality control issues. It seems that things have finally sorted themselves out, and just in time.