Boeing (Chicago, Seattle, Wichita and Charles) is conducting remote testing of its 787 test aircraft. Four of the five Boeing 787 flight test airplanes are conducting remote test operations this week. ZA005 continues testing from its base of operations in Seattle.
ZA001, the first 787, is taking a break from operations out of Edwards Air Force Base in California for a week’s worth of testing in Roswell, NM. This is ZA001’s second visit to Roswell. Last month the airplane conducted wet-runway testing there. Testing in the days ahead will include rejected-takeoff conditions. ZA001 has been on remote deployment to Edwards Air Force Base for several weeks, with a focus on takeoff- and landing-performance conditions.
The second 787 is conducting high-latitude and cold-weather testing at Keflavik Airport in Iceland.
The hot weather in Yuma, AZ, with temperatures in excess of 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius), has provided the necessary conditions for another set of tests happening on ZA003. Its deployment is expected to last about another week.
ZA004 has spent an extended time operating out of Victorville, CA, conducting flight loads survey testing. This testing measures external pressure distributions throughout the flight envelope. ZA004 is set to do testing in Glasgow, MT, after it wraps up its California testing.
Artificial ice shapes have been affixed to the leading edges of the wings and horizontal and vertical stabilizer of the fifth 787 to complete another group of tests required for certification. Ice-shape testing verifies the airplane’s performance in the presence of ice. Natural ice testing has already occurred.
The 787 flight test fleet has conducted more than 1,650 hours of flying over more than 540 flights.
Copyright Photo: Rick Schlamp. One of the test aircraft, the fourth (ZA004), Boeing 787-881 N7874 (msn 40693) taxies past the camera at wet Seattle (Boeing Field-King County).
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