Hainan Airlines (Haikou and Beijing) and Boeing (Chicago) today (July 4) celebrated the delivery of the airline’s first 787 Dreamliner at Charleston, SC.  Boeing 787-8 B-2722 (msn 34939) was handed over to the carrier. The following day the aircraft flew to Boeing Field in Seattle as a crew rest stop and training before proceeding to China. The delivery is the first of 10 787s for Hainan Airlines.

Hainan Airlines will first operate the Dreamliner on a domestic route from Beijing to Haikou starting on July 31. Thereafter, the airline will deploy the 787 on its North America routes, increasing the frequency of its Beijing-Seattle/Tacoma, Beijing-Toronto (Pearson) and Beijing-Chicago (O’Hare) services, with several new destinations.

Beijing-Chicago (O’Hare) commences on September 3.

The Hainan Airlines 787 Dreamliner interior consists of 36 full, flat-bed business seats configured in rows of 2-2-2, as well as 177 economy seats configured in rows of 3-3-3.  Each seat has a 15-inch, touch screen panel and a power outlet.  Each business seat also has a USB port.

As one of only seven airlines rated as five-star by Skytrax, Hainan Airlines is the fourth largest airline in terms of fleet size in the People’s Republic of China.  Its current fleet includes 106 Boeing airplanes. The airline serves scheduled domestic and international services on 500 routes fromBeijing, Haikou and other operating base on the mainland, and provides charter services.

Copyright Photo: Joe G. Walker. Boeing 787-8 B-2728 (msn 34938) lands at Paine Field Field near Everett after a test flight.

Hainan Airlines: