Further to my post last week, Boeing plans to conduct two flight tests of its revamped 787 battery system.The flights would depart from and return to Paine Field, the airport in Everett, Washington, where the 787 Dreamliner is made. One flight would collect data for its own usage. The data from the second flight would be submitted for FAA approval. If successful, then this would be a step forward to Boeing getting the aircraft approved for service within weeks. None of the airlines using 787s have begun planning to get their planes up yet. In…
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787 Battery Fix?
Boeing announced this week their proposed alterations to the 787 lithium-ion batteries to prevent any major incidents in flight. Tellingly, the company has not announced the cause of he problem which suggests they do not still know it. The changes are designed not only to improve safety but reassure regulators, carriers and the public that the plane is safe. The changes include: improving the insulation between the eight cells in the battery. The batteries’ original insulation was made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) which can withstand heat of 300 degrees Fahrenheit (149 degrees Celsius). The cells…
Where can you find a 787?
Seven airlines have fifty 787s grounded at airports across the world: Tokyo Haneda, Japan: 12 Tokyo Narita, Japan: 7 Mumbai, India: 5 Houston, USA: 4 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia:4 Santiago, Chile: 3 Takamatsu, Japan: 2 Bangalore, India: 1 Boston, USA: 1 Chicago,USA: 1 Doha, Qatar: 1 Frankfurt, Germany: 1 Kumamoto, Japan: 1 London Heathrow, UK: 1 Los Angeles, USA: 1 Matsuyama, Japan: 1 Warsaw, Poland: 1 In addition, Boeing has about 20 undelivered 787s.
787 situation gets more serious
The 787 grounding has now been in place for a month and it looks like Boeing faces months more. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has indicated that it will be weeks before it identifies the causes of the thermal runaway in the 787’s lithium-ion-batteries. Boeing conducted a second test flight of the 787 from Seattle’s Boeing field across Washington state last Monday for an hour and 29 minutes. The flight was uneventful. Boeing advised that the flight data is being analysed but did not release any details. Boeing is basically guaranteed not to be able to…
Thomson 787
Thomson airlines, the European launch customer for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, have been running a competition to name their first plane using the hashtag: #nameourplane This is a clever way to get publicity for their first 787 which will arrive in early 2013 with services starting 1st May, 2013. Another three are expected to be delivered in 2013, three more in 2014 and one in 2015. This will give the carrier eight of these planes. The ‘Thomson 787 will carry 291 passengers, which is more cozier than any other carrier so far. This compares with Ethiopian’s 270, United’s 219…
Qatar 787 -at last!
One hundred passengers joined Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker for the delivery flight of their 787 from Seattle to Doha on November 17. I am in no way envious! Qatar are the Middle Eastern launch customer for the 787 having ordered 60 of the planes – 30 firm with options for 30 more. Qatar is rated a five star airline and has been nominated airline of the year twice by Skytrax. They are the newest entrant to One World. I have yet to fly them. Qatar Airways had refused to take delivery of the first five of their 787s…
787 September 2012 Update
The speed at which airlines are adding 787s is overwhelming. This week marks the first anniversary of the handover of the first 787 All Nippon Airways (ANA) on September 25, 2011. The carrier now own 13 of the Dreamliners. ANA were followed by: Japan Air Lines: March, 2012- currently have five Ethiopian: August 14, 2012 -one LAN August 31, 2012 – one Air India September 8, 2012 – received two 787s United Airlines will probably get their first 787 next week Qatar was meant to get their 787 but it has been delayed for some technical issues Related Posts LOT…
Qantas Loses Money and Cancels 35 787-9s
At a Qantas media conference today, the public were informed that the group made a statutory loss after tax of $244 million. Its first loss for 20 years. The group had a $95 million profit before tax. Again, Qantas shareholders will receive no dividend. Record high fuel costs of $4.3 billion, up $645 million made a major dent. We also found out the cost of the industrial action and grounding of the Qantas fleet ($194 million). What we didn’t find out was the actual cost of the industrial action versus the grounding. Of the industrial action, some cost the company nothing (for…
The 787 heads to Ethiopia
This one snuck up on me. Ethiopian Airlines will take delivery of its first 787 on Tuesday 14th August (next Tuesday). A crew will fly the new plane from Washington, D.C. to Addis Ababa on Thursday, August 16, 2012. The plane’s maiden flight the following weekend dubbed “The Dream Tour,” will be on August 18, 2012, with a sightseeing flight to Mount Kilimanjaro for around 270 invited guests, consisting of Ministers, Ambassadors, other VIPs, Ethiopian ShebaMiles [Frequent Flyer] Gold Members and media. Jealous! The first Ethiopian Dreamliner conducted its first test flight on Monday, July 9,…
United ditches Auckland-Houston
Remember the promise of a 787 flight from Auckland to Houston Intercontinental (IAH)? It was made by pre merger Continental. At approximately 11900 km (7400 miles), the new route was to be the longest from Continental’s Houston hub. I was very excited by this possibility. Houston is a much nicer airport than Los Angeles and the flight would get you into the heart of the USA. For me, Melbourne-Auckland-Houston-Philadelphia for example (as nightmarish as it sounds) is much more preferable than Melbourne-Sydney-Los Angeles-Philadelphia. Changing planes at Sydney is a hassle and in Los Angeles it is awful. The only…
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