Everett’s Surge
Over the next two years or so, Boeing will continue to ramp up 787-8 production with the help of the newly-announced temporary surge line. The line will be established on the existing 767 line inside Building 40-24, two bays down from the current 787 line, say company sources. The 767, which will continue operating at around a 1-per month production rate, will be turned around in the back of 40-24 and roll out of Building 40-34. Boeing may have to make provisions to ensure a fully assembled 767 can transit to the flight line. Sometime in 2012, Boeing will begin final assembly and testing of the first 787-9 in Everett, where the aircraft will be built. Seven of the 10 787s assembled per month will originate in Everett.
Charleston Timeline
Boeing says that the Charleston line will
be up and running by July 2011, with groundbreaking in the next few
weeks. For the sake of comparison, Global Aeronautica ground breaking
was February 7, 2005, with tooling and equipment moved into the
facility by December 2006. Initially the plan is to have Boeing
Charleston build 3 787-8s per month as part of the 10 per month ramp
up. First delivery of a 787-8 from Boeing Charleston is planned for the first quarter of 2012.
Dreamlifter Dynamics
With the second line set to be up and running by 2012, the small fleet of modified 747 LCF Dreamlifters will be deployed differently than they currently are now. The number of inbound structural delivery flights to Everett is now seven per aircraft. For Charleston, best estimates show that that number would reduce to six. This is mainly because without the aft and center fuselages will be built on site in Charleston. Boeing saves flights of the horizontal stabilizer, however, the wings will have an additional flight from PAE to CHS and the vertical tail plane will also likely be flown from BFI (closer to Frederickson, WA) to CHS. The total distance traveled by the LCF is 16405 nm to Everett vs. 13933 nm to Charleston.
| EVERETT | ROUTE | Flights | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WINGS (Nagoya, JP) | NGO-ANC-PAE | 2 | 4369 | |
| FWD FUSE (Wichita) | IAB-PAE | 1 | 1258 | |
| HTP (Foggia, IT) | TAR-CHS-PAE | 2 | 6574 | |
| CENTER & AFT (Charleston) | CHS-PAE | 2 | 4205 | |
| TOTAL: | 7 | 16405 | NM |
| CHARLESTON | ROUTE | Flights | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WINGS (Nagoya, JP) | NGO-ANC-PAE-CHS | 3 | 6471 | |
| FWD FUSE (Wichita) | IAB-CHS | 1 | 891 | |
| HTP (Foggia, IT) | TAR-CHS | 1 | 4472 | |
| VTP (Washington) | BFI-CHS | 1 | 2099 | |
| TOTAL: | 6 | 13933 | NM |
Delivery Geography
Though not officially announced, there is a the possibility of shaping the 787 firing
order based on the geographical location of the customer. I
spoke with one program source yesterday who said that Boeing may
consider delivering European and African 787s through Charleston and
Asia/Pacific 787s through Everett to take advantage of the
relative proximity of each line.
The Tanker Wild Card
Hanging out in the not so distant future is the USAF KC-X tanker deal. If
Boeing wins this iteration of the competition, the KC-767 or KC-777
will be built in Everett, however the mission systems installation will
be done elsewhere. That location was always thought to be McConnell
Air Force Base in Wichita, Kansas, however, Boeing now says they will
choose the cheapest location for the modifications, which could now
mean that Charleston is in the mix. Boeing went to great lengths to say
that the Charleston line is only for 787 work, but let’s file this one
under wild card.
Photo Credit Boeing
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.