With the 747-8F schedule increasingly shaky, inside Boeing’s Everett factory assembly operations are progressing toward final body join of RC001, the first 747-8I.Boeing expects to join RC001’s fuselage sections together late in the third quarter or early fourth quarter, placing the commencement of final assembly in late September or October.
Currently, sections 41 and 42 which make up the 747’s iconic hump, are being joined over in Building 40-23, behind the massive 787 static test rig at the front of the building. Section 46, which will be mated to section 48, the aircraft aft fuselage, is currently in build up.
The 747-8F upper deck is the same size as the original 747-100, while the 747-8I upper deck will be the longest stretch Boeing has designed into the jetliner since the 747-400.
Boeing also plans to perform the stub join, which will see the first 747-8I’s wings joined to the center wing box, before being hoisted by two overhead cranes and lowered into the final body join position.
Meanwhile, the 747-8F test fleet continues to move forward through its certification campaign even as the program works through inboard aileron and structural flutter issues:
- RC501 which just emerged from a week of planned maintenance following stability and control testing, is now pressing forward with wing twist evaluations.
- RC521 ferried to Colorado Spring, Colorado on 20 August for high altitude ground testing of the aircraft’s engines and auxiliary power unit.
- RC522 is currently undergoing community noise testing in Glasgow, Montana.
- RC503, the newest member of the flight test fleet, is performing High Intensity Radiated Fields (HIRF) evaluations in Palmdale, California.
Rendering Credit Boeing
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This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.