After a two month hiatus, I wanted to provide an update on where things stood with the 787 program. Early October gave us a six month delay announcement from Boeing. The timeframes below reflect new program expectations (as Boeing says, there is always risk involved in any projection of expectations)
Dreamliner One – ZA001
ZA001 was lowered back on to its landing gear and moved to position three in Building 40-26 just prior to the October 10th press conference call. This was the first step to make way for delivery of new structural components.
Brackets are being installed in the fuselage and some rack shelves for avionics and flight test equipment is now in the cargo bay. Installation of flight test sensors is underway in the wings as well as wiring on the forward side of the wing spars.
Flight deck installation has begun as of last week. A photograph taken in early November and shared with Flightblogger, shows the progress in the concluding structural and early wiring phase. Boeing Chairman and CEO Jim McNerney visited the factory floor to check in on progress on the factory floor, as well as offer his personal thanks and appreciation for the hard work of the 787 team.
Internal schedules point to a production power on in late January, though limited power on testing has begun to test circuit breakers and other electronics in the wings. Though unconfirmed by official sources, Dreamliner One is tentatively scheduled to be flight ready by late February. Word from the factory floor confirms this time frame is on target with expectations.
UPDATE: See Explaining 787 Flight Readiness
787 Cabin Mockup In Dubai
This post was originally published to the internet between 2007 and 2012. Links, images, and embedded media from that era may no longer function as intended.
This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.