Tag Archives: Boeing Field

Boeing donates 787-8 N787BX (ZA003) to the Museum of Flight

Boeing (Chicago and Seattle) and its employees on November 8 joined the Puget Sound community in celebrating the donation of one of the original 787-8 Dreamliner (N787BX, msn 40692) flight test airplanes to the Museum of Flight in Seattle.

The Dreamliner Boeing donated to the museum is known as ZA003 (N787BX), the third 787-8 produced. The airplane has a unique past, first as part of the 787 flight test and certification program and later circumnavigating the globe several times in 2011 and 2012 during the Dream Tour, which introduced the 787 to more than 68,000 visitors in 23 countries.

“This revolutionary airplane caps the museum’s collection of historic commercial airplanes, beginning with our 1932 Boeing 247, which was the first all-metal, modern airliner,” said Doug King, president and CEO, Museum of Flight. “It was followed by our 1969 prototype 747, the first jumbo jet, and now with the first composite airliner, the 787. It’s an incredible addition to our comprehensive display.”

The celebration at the Museum of Flight included several Boeing employees whose work over the years played a role in the design, build and test of the 787 Dreamliner. Each person disembarked the airplane and presented a special artifact tied to the history of the airplane to museum docents and students from local high schools.

The artifacts given by employees ranged from a commemorative cachet carried aboard the 787’s first flight, to early artist renderings of the 7E7. Those artifacts will now be housed at the Museum of Flight.

ZA003 is the first of three flight test 787-8s Boeing plans to share with museums around the world, the aviation community and future generations of employees and airplane enthusiasts.

About The Museum of Flight:

The independent, non-profit Museum of Flight is one of the largest air and space museums in the world, attracting more than 500,000 visitors annually. The Museum’s collection includes more than 160 historically significant air- and spacecraft, the original manufacturing facility of The Boeing Company, and the world’s only full-scale NASA Space Shuttle Trainer. The Museum’s aviation and space library and archives are the largest on the West Coast. More than 130,000 individuals are served annually by the Museum’s on-site and outreach educational programs. The Museum of Flight is accredited by the American Association of Museums, and is an Affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution.

The Museum of Flight is located at 9404 E. Marginal Way S., Seattle, Exit 158 off Interstate 5 on Boeing Field halfway between downtown Seattle and Sea-Tac Airport. The Museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Top Copyright Photo: Ariel Shocron/AirlinersGallery.com. N787BX stopped at Madrid on its Dream Tour.

Bottom Copyright Photo: Boeing. Boeing 787-8 N787BX is pictured at its new home at Boeing Field.

Aerolineas Argentinas is coming to Punta Cana

Aerolineas Argentinas (Buenos Aires) will add Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on January 3, 2015 via Caracas per Airline Route. The new route will be operated three days a week with Boeing 737-800s.

The airline will also serve Havana via Caracas starting on January 5, 2015.

Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-8BK N5573P (msn 41561) departs from Boeing Field in Seattle on a test flight. The new aircraft was delivered as LV-FRQ on April 10, 2014.

Aerolineas Argentinas:

United Airlines takes delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner

United Airlines (Chicago) has become the first North American carrier to take delivery of the Boeing 787-9, a stretched version of the Dreamliner that will allow the airline to accommodate more customers and further capitalize on its worldwide route network. The aircraft is the first of 26 of the newest member of the Dreamliner family United has on order.

The airline’s technicians will now perform United-specific software installations and hardware upgrades. United pilots will then fly the aircraft to the airline’s Houston hub for additional flights before it is expected to enter domestic service in late September.

The 787-9’s extended range – 8,550 miles compared to the 787-8’s 8,200 – will enable United to launch its Los Angeles to Melbourne, Australia, service on October 26, the airline’s first regularly scheduled international deployment of the aircraft. It will be the longest Dreamliner route in the world to date. In advance of the Melbourne route launch, United will primarily fly the aircraft between Houston (Bush Intercontinental) and Los Angeles.

United’s 787-9 will be configured with 252 seats – 48 in United BusinessFirst and 204 in United Economy, including 88 Economy Plus seats with added legroom and increased personal space.

Wi-Fi on the 787-9

United’s 787-9 fleet comes with factory-installed Wi-Fi connectivity. Starting with this aircraft delivery, all of the airline’s subsequent Dreamliners, including the -8 and -10 variants, will be delivered with Wi-Fi. United currently has Wi-Fi on more than 300 aircraft, including all of its Airbus and Boeing 747 aircraft, and plans to equip the vast majority of its mainline fleet with Wi-Fi by mid-2015.

Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 787-9 N38950 (msn 36401) passes the camera at Seattle’s Boeing Field (King County Airport) (BFI).

United Airlines Aircraft Slide Show (Current): CLICK HERE

Flydubai to fly to Tehran and Mashhad in Iran

Flydubai (Dubai) today announced the launch of flights to Tehran and Mashhad, the carrier’s first two destinations in Iran.

Flights to Tehran will begin on August 11 and Mashhad on August 10. Flydubai will serve Iran with four flights a week, providing passengers with greater convenience when travelling between the United Arab Emirates and Iran. The carrier will be looking at expanding its network in the market as it continues to strengthen the trade and travel links from Dubai to the region.

The carrier, which took delivery of three new Next-Generation Boeing 737-800s in July (one is pictured above), has grown its fleet to 39 aircraft with more than 100 new Boeing aircraft on order.

Flydubai commenced its new services to Kandahar in July and Aden at the beginning of August. The airline is also set to commence flights to Moscow and Kazakhstan in September, Mumbai in October and to Sarajevo and Zagreb in December.

Top Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com. The pictured Boeing 737-8KN A6-FEM 9msn 40264) was handed over to the carrier on July 14, 2014.

Flydubai:

Bottom Copyright Photo: Flydubai. According to the carrier, “Orange represents the warmth of the climate and the people and blue represents the sparkling clear sea and endless blue skies. The free flowing bands on the tail are reflective of the ever-changing coastline of Dubai”.

Route Map:

QANTAS Airways to refurbish its Boeing 737-800 fleet

QANTAS Airways (Sydney) will refurbish its fleet of 67 Boeing 737-800 aircraft, providing customers with a greater level of comfort and enhanced in-flight entertainment options.

The upgrade will commence in mid-2015 and be completed within 12 months.

According to the airline, “29 of our latest 737-800 aircraft already have full seat back video on demand in-flight entertainment for each passenger, the refurbishment will see wireless Q-streaming entertainment installed on the 38 remaining 737-800 aircraft to supplement the screens that fold down from the ceiling.”

QANTAS has 67 Boeing 737-800s in its domestic fleet, and will receive four new aircraft by December. Earlier this year the last of the older Boeing 737-400s was retired. The average age of the QF Boeing 737-800’s is 6.7 years.

The installation of QStreaming on the Boeing 737s is part of a broader overhaul of QANTAS’ in-flight entertainment offering, including 100 more hours of content per month, and the introduction of Sky News, Foxtel and Fox Sports for inflight news and additional programming.

QANTAS Airways:

Spring Airlines Japan launches operations today

Spring Airlines Japan (Tokyo-Narita) today (August 1) as planned, launched passenger operations from Narita International Airport to Hiroshima, Saga and Takamatsu with its 189-seat Boeing 737-800s according to ZipanguFlyer.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Rick Schlamp/AirlinersGallery.com. The pictured Boeing 737-81D N272LM (msn 39429) became JA01GR on delivery.

Spring Airlines Japan:

Boeing delivers the first 787-9 to ANA

Boeing (Chicago and Seattle) and All Nippon Airways (ANA) (Tokyo) yesterday (July 28) celebrated the delivery of the airline’s first 787-9 Dreamliner.

ANA will become the world’s first airline to operate both the 787-8 and 787-9 variants of the Dreamliner family when the airline launches 787-9 services on domestic Japanese routes in August.

With this delivery, ANA will have 29 787s in its fleet, more than any other operator in the world.

The 787-9 complements and extends the 787 family. With the fuselage stretched by 20 feet (6 meters) over the 787-8, the 787-9 will fly up to 40 more passengers an additional 450 nautical miles (830 kilometers) with the same exceptional environmental performance – 20 percent less fuel use and 20 percent fewer emissions than similarly sized airplanes.

ANA has 29 more 787-9s on order with commitments for 14 more. Sixty customers from around the world have ordered more than 1,000 787s, with more than 160 currently in operation.

ANA:

ANA to become the first operator of the stretched Boeing 787-9 on August 4

ANA (All Nippon Airways) (Tokyo) will become the world’s first airline to operate the new stretched version of the Boeing Dreamliner when it launches services on domestic Japanese routes in August with the 787-9 variant of the aircraft.

Deliveries to ANA of the 787-9, an extended fuselage model of the aircraft, from Boeing’s Everett site in Washington are due to begin on July 27. The first aircraft will arrive in Tokyo on July 29. The aircraft achieves even better fuel economy than the 787-8, recording an improvement of 23% (*1), and also has approximately 20% more seating and cargo capacity (*2), resulting in a further reduction in operating costs. The aircraft will contribute to the continued expansion of ANA’s business, particularly in its international network.

In advance of bringing the plane into scheduled commercial service, ANA is going to operate a special commemorative flight for the ‘Dreamliner’ on August 4, 2014. ANA will fly Japanese and American elementary school children living in Japan on a flight for the next generation of air passengers. The aircraft will fly from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to fly over Mount Fuji, one of Japan’s best known landmarks and newest World Heritage Site. The TOMODACHI logo will be displayed on the new aircraft, in support of the initiative to strengthen Japanese-US ties.

About the TOMODACHI logo:

ANA signed the sponsorship agreement in 2012 for the public-private partnership TOMODACHI Initiative led by the US Embassy in Japan and the US-Japan Council to strengthen US-Japan ties. An opportunity was created to promote these principles and expand these activities by displaying the TOMODACHI logo on three aircraft to fly on routes between the US and Japan.

While the aircraft is expected to show lower operating costs and improved environmental performance as a result of even better fuel economy, the 787-9, like the 787-8, makes use of state-of-the-art technology to provide customers with a new level of in-flight comfort through innovations such as improved cabin humidity, reduced discomfort from cabin pressure changes, and larger windows and luggage storages.

ANA’s first 787-9 will be delivered with domestic route specifications and will be equipped with 395 seats, 60 more than the 787-8 when flown on domestic routes. The aircraft will begin service on domestic routes from August onwards and, from the next fiscal year beginning in April, 2015, ANA will introduce the new aircraft on international routes. ANA was the launch customer for the Dreamliner and is the world’s biggest operator of the 787, having ordered a total of 80 aircraft, including 36 787-8s (28 already delivered) and 44 787-9s.

The fuel savings achieved from the 787 aircraft already in service are sufficient to operate 500 round trips from Tokyo to Frankfurt and are reducing CO2 emissions by 150,000 tons a year. When all 80 Dreamliners are in operation, the CO2 reduction will be 450,000 tons, with enough fuel saved to operate 1,400 round trips to Frankfurt.

The introduction of this new, advanced aircraft will accelerate ANA’s growth strategy including the development of new routes and increased flight frequencies on existing routes, enabling ANA to serve passengers better and making it even more competitive.

(*1) The fuel economy comparison is based on the Boeing 767-300 ER
(*2) The seat number comparison is based on the number of seats in cabins fitted for domestic routes.

The cargo comparison is based on the cargo capacity by weight.

ANA CEO’s statement on the reliability and performance of the new 787 batteries:

A year has passed since we recommenced regular flights of Boeing 787 on June 1 of last year with a comprehensive battery strategy after the emergency landing of ANA Flight 692 at Takamatsu Airport on January 16 of last year.

Since then we have operated approximately 26,000 flights with over 4.7 million passengers and about 100,000 tons of cargo and mail. Regarding the renovated batteries, we have monitored their operating conditions on a daily basis and regularly removed them from the aircraft for inspection. We have confirmed that they are operating normally.

The ANA Group is making every effort to ensure safe flight operations in order to provide peace of mind to our customers. We look forward to serving you on board the comfortable and environmentally friendly 787.

Osamu Shinobe
President & CEO
All Nippon Airways, Co. Ltd.

June 2, 2014

On-Time Reliability of the 787 versus the 777 and 767:

Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com (click on the photo for the full size view). Boeing 787-9 N1792B (msn 34522) will become JA830A on the handover.

ANA:

China Eastern Airlines becomes the first Chinese airline to offer Wi-Fi services over China

China Eastern Airlines (Shanghai) has begun offering Wi-Fi service over China. The airline issued this statement:

In a first for the commercial aviation industry in China, China Eastern Airlines (CEA) has begun offering broadband connected flights over China using China Telecom Satellite aeronautical service and Panasonic Avionics Corporation’s (Panasonic) eXConnect system.

The first of 27 CEA aircraft equipped with a system and service tailored to the unique requirements of China is an Airbus A330 aircraft. Onboard, passengers will experience true broadband Wi-Fi as they surf the web, keep in touch with friends and family through their social networks, and even check their email – all at 35,000 feet. CEA has also selected China Telecom Satellite’s service and Panasonic’s eXConnect system for an additional six Boeing 767s and 20 Boeing 777 aircraft.

The first aircraft has been dedicated to routes between Shanghai and Beijing, allowing government agencies to observe operation of the service before granting full regulatory approval for operation on additional domestic and international routes.

China Eastern Airlines said, “We are very excited to offer this extremely exciting service with China Telecom Satellite and Panasonic Avionics. This is a tremendous milestone for China and we look forward to ensuring our passengers are both entertained and productive as they fly.”

Lv Junli, President of China Telecom Satellite, added, “This is a momentous day for China’s commercial airline industry, and we are very confident of providing better broadband connectivity to China with our partners at China Eastern Airlines and Panasonic.”

According to Paul Margis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Panasonic Avionics, “After years of close collaboration with China Eastern Airlines and China Telecom Satellite, we are now witnessing the next step in the evolution of in-flight entertainment over China. We are very excited to bring in-flight broadband Wi-Fi to this strategic market.”

About Panasonic Avionics Corporation

Panasonic Avionics Corporation is the world’s leading supplier of in-flight entertainment and communication systems. The company’s best-in-class solutions, supported by professional maintenance services, fully integrate with the cabin enabling airlines to deliver the ultimate travel experiences with a rich variety of entertainment choices, resulting in improved quality communication systems and solutions, reduced time-to-market and lower overall costs.

Established in 1979, Panasonic Avionics Corporation, a U.S. corporation, is a subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation of North America, the principal North American subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation. Headquartered in Lake Forest, California with over 3,100 employees and operations in 80 locations worldwide, it serves over 200 customers worldwide and provides IFEC systems on over 3,700 aircraft. For additional information, please visit http://www.panasonic.aero

About China Telecom Satellite Communications Limited

Dedicated to satellite communications services, China Telecom Satellite Communications Limited, as a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Telecom, specializes in the operation of its parent corporation’s satellite communications business. It serves as the resource center, product integration center and professional support center of China Telecom’s satellite communications business, mainly engaged in Satellite mobile communications, Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) communications, International private line and Satellite broadband access, etc., providing integrated (Aviation/Land/Maritime) satellite communications and broadcasting operating service with characteristics to subscribers.

Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com. Brand new Boeing 737-89P WL B-1965 (msn 41473) was just delivered to China Eastern Airlines on July 19, 2014.

China Eastern Airlines:

Nok Air takes delivery of a special 10th Anniversary Boeing 737-800

Boeing (Chicago and Seattle) today (July 11) delivered to Nok Airlines Public Company Limited (Nok Air) (Bangkok) this Boeing 737-86J registered as HS-DBQ (msn 37794) painted in this 10th Anniversary special livery.

The 737-800, owned by Ireland-based leasing company Avolon and operated by Nok Air, features the traditional bird-themed livery with the addition of stars, streamers and “10th Anniversary” painted on the airplane to celebrate the milestone. The aircraft was previously planned to go to Airberlin.

Nok Air means Bird Air in the Thai language.

Nok Air: