787 Cockpit

The cockpit of the Boeing 787 has struck the eye of many pilots in the aviation world. The 787 cockpit will be entirely glass with HUDs (heads up displays). THe 787 will also feature an electronic flight bag that will allow all charts to be shown digitally on a computer screen. The days of pilots looking at maps are now officially over! The cockpit will have two seats and will allow enough room for observers to sit behind the pilots and take notes. The 787 cockpit also limits the number of emergency switches and clears the clutter many wide-body aircraft cockpits in the past have had to deal with. Traditional Boeing fans need not to worry as a basic rudder and yoke system will still be utilized on the 787. The cockpit will also use a phone system and have the best radar available to all plots.

Landing Gear Information

Messier-Dowty of France, has been selected to supply the main and nose landing gear. The electric braking system, built by Goodrich and Messier-Bugatti, is comprised of electro-mechanically actuated carbon brakes and electro-mechanical actuator controllers. The new system will enhance reliability and ensure the breaks do not overheat on landing. The new breaks also minimize any leaking of fluids and will help to keep runways clear of hydraulic fluid. It is important to note the 787 will still have ten wheels as planned with strengthened main gear. The gear are also more streamlined than current gear on Boeing's 767. The gear will limit induced drag as the 787 lands and will further improve the impact of aircraft on the environment.

Big Deals for Big Shots

Virgin Atlantic and Air Canada has place orders on the new 787 that is planning to unveil in about three months. Virgin Atlantic has proudly stated that the new Boeing 787 is the company’s “new aircraft of the future.” Air Canada has plans to replace the A330s, A340s, and 767 widebodies with the new 787. Boeing is excited of these two new orders and has said that these two are the highest customer orders from a North American and European airline respectively. Sucks to be you Airbus. C'est la vie.

From Aero-News.net

Easy Does It

Hello everyone, The Seattle Times has reported that the horizontal tail section of the very first 787 (built by Alenia Aeronautica) has arrived at Everett, Washington yesterday after its long trip from Foggia, Italy. Unlike the other parts of the 787, the horizontal tail was broken up into several pieces due to its triangular shape which made transporting the whole piece rather difficult. Due to the complexity of the ambitious production flow that Boeing has planned, the pieces are not entirely finished before they shipped them to the US. Boeing’s production plan has stated that the individual parts are completely finished before shipping to the US. Once in the US, all that has to be done is to assemble the parts together. Since this is the first 787 ever assembled, Boeing has expected minor changes to its production plan. Boeing is planning to prefect the production flow sometime in the future. Speaking of the production flow, Boeing is still immensely trying to get the Dreamlifter certified by the FAA. The transporting of the horizontal tail section also served as the Dreamlifter’s flight test for certification. Since the horizontal tail section has safety arrived at Everett, I am pretty sure that the Dreamlifter would be certified in no time. As you can see, the 787 is not just a new plane to replace the old Boeing fleet, it is also a new face lift for the entire company.

Orders Going Well

On April 3, 2007, Boeing officially passed the 500 order count on the 787 Dreamliner. JAL ordered 5 787s and that pushed the total over the initial goal of 500. General Electric has also reported positive progress with the GenX engine. The GE engine choice seems to have become far more popular than the Rolls Royce option. Many future orders coming from North America are expected to go with GE as it is an American based company with exceptional service. As the production moves onward, Boeing is happily awaiting the roll out date.

Recent Deals

Over the past few weeks, more and more airlines have continued to sign on for the Boeing 787 project. Continental Airlines confirmed their order for 5 787-9 Dreamliners, pushing their order total to nearly 25. Continental said they chose the 787 because of its extremely low cost per seat mile. Both Larry Keller, CEO of Continental, and Ray Conner, Boeing Sales Executive, have both described the deal process as a dream. First Choice Airways of the United Kingdom has also reached an agreement for four additional 787s. As airlines continue to see the progress Boeing is making, expect more and more 787 orders. With the A-380 struggling, the airline industry at Boeing is on a tear.

Components Coming Together

On March 14, 2007, Boeing celebrated the roll out of the first vertical fin for the Boeing 787. The vertical fin is the largest primary structure on the 787 airframe. The vertical fin was built at the Composite Manufacturing Center and utilized the highest level of technology in its design. The assembly is moving along strongly as Japan has been producing their components on time. The 747-400 LCF or large cargo freighter, has started brining over many of the parts from Japan. Boeing continues to assert it is on time and the 787 roll-out is looking closer than ever.

Order News

On February 19, 2007, Air New Zealand finalized an order for an additional four 787-9s. The order total is now 468 total from 37 customers. On the 19th, Boeing also finalized a deal with LOT Polish Airlines for one additional 787, bringing their total to eight. The Dreamliner launch is set to become the most successful launch of any commercial aircraft ever. Boeing has seen more orders from international airlines than expected. Kenya, Jet, and Aeromexico have all recently added their names to the list of potential customers. Expect the number of interntaional orders to grow within the coming year as the launch nears.

Bad News for Boeing

Earlier mentioned within this blog was the use of composite materials for the construction of Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner. Development has hit a snag with the most resent round of destructive testing. During a simulation of a bird strike, where a bird carcase was shot at a section of the wing the composite skin of the that section shattered. This is tremendous set back as engineers begin the search for a solution.

Finally, The Building Begins

According to Aviation Week & Space Technology, the first sections of the first 787 forward fuselage and its center wheel built in Japan, are being air-freighted to Boeing's factory in South Carolina. Obviously, these sections are too big for UPS or FedEx to ship, so Boeing created a LCF transport aircraft known as the DreamLifter. There are currently only two DreamLifters made out of three DreamLifters intended for shipping 787 parts. The first DreamLifter wasn't even painted when it started shipping the 787 parts around. That's how relentlessly Boeing is trying to keep the 787 on schedule. Besides having parts from Japan, Boeing also assign other companies around the world to design different parts of the 787. The nose of the 787 is made in Kanas, while center fuselage is created in Italy. The final assembly of the 787 will take place at Boeing's factory in Everett, Washington. All Nippon Airways and a Japanese carrier have placed orders for the 787. So far so good for Boeing.

Owning a 787

For airlines interested in the Boeing 787, the first major obstacle is cost. The most basic model, the 787-3 is listed at between $138-143 million US dollars. The more capable 787-8 is listed at US $148-158 million. Lastly, the long-range 787-9 is listed at $179-188 million in US currency. The 787 will hold nearly 33,258 gallons of fuel when fully loaded for long haul trips. Airlines must determine if the demand will cover their costs. However, an advantage to owning the 787 is that it is interchangeable between General Electric and Rolls Royce Engines. The engine market alone for the 787 is estimated to top $40 billion. Airlines have been pleased to know that the 787 is a two-pilot crew with easier training than previous models. This will also help to keep operating costs low. One of the unknown benefits of owning a 787 is that the cabin is made of components that are immune to corrosion. This will allow the 787 to be kept at a higher humidity and further increase passenger comfort. The overall improved comfort of passengers in both coach and business class will make flying on the 787 a pleasure. This will clearly help to offset some of the costs of ownership.

New Age; New Construction

With the new design of the 787 several new technologies will also be incorporated in the design. the most "cutting-edge" is the use of composite materials rather then aluminum. According to Boeing almost half of the construction of the fuselage and wings of the 787 will be of composite materials. Other technologies contributing to the cutting-edge of the program are the power plants. Both General Electric and Rolls-Royce have been contracted by Boeing to culminate that latest in gas turbine engine technology to develop an entirely new engine design for new 787 fleet of aircraft. All partners in the joint venture are expecting an unprecedented 8% jump in efficiency. The new 787 should be lighter and more fuel efficient then anything before it making it far more cheaper to operate as it can carry more payload, farther, for less fuel.

Information is courtesy of Boeing Corporate Web Page

Boeing's Shift to the Digital Age

Despite growing competition with Airbus, Boeing is changing the way it assembles the 787. Instead of the old pencil-drawing blueprints, Boeing is going high-tech. What I mean by high-tech is Boeing simulated a realistic virtual rollout of the 787 through its entire production stages as a way to keep the real production on schedule. After assembling all of the parts of the 787 separately, the manufactures will assemble the parts together piece by piece in a four-station plan produced by the virtual simulation. Boeing’s new virtual simulation keeps the manufactures and the company on the same page and helps increase the production flow. The first 787 will take several months to build, but the hundredth 787 will take about six days to build. Boeing has further ambitions to decrease the assembly process to only three days, but I think that six days is very good. Boeing isn’t focusing on the speed of the production, but rather the efficiency of the aircraft.

Information of the 787 production taken from Aviation Weekly & Space Technology

Background on the 787

With many Boeing 767 and Airbus A300/310 models reaching the 20+ years of service mark, Boeing decided it was time to develop a very efficient replacement. Boeing created a twin-engine widebody capable of using 20% less fuel than current models. Boeing's design team in Everett Washington came up with three different models (-3 -8 -9) for the new 787 Dreamliner family. The 787-3 was designed primarily for high-density shorter-range flights. With seating of 290-330 passengers, the model will easily replace the 767-300 and DC-10s flying these routes. The 787-8 is a small long-range aircraft that will carry 200-215 passengers up to 8,000 NM. Lastly, the 787-9 will serve as a much longer ultra-range aircraft carrying 250-290 passengers up to 8,800 miles. With 21 airlines having ordered the models so far, Boeing is confident the 787 Dreamliner will help them maintain a greater market share over rival Airbus. Production has already begun and first entry into service is expected in 2008.