Aircraft

Middle East Boeing 787 customers will be encouraged by news from Seattle that the airframer has completed the installation of reinforcements within the side-of-body section on the first Dreamliner.

The modification entails installing new fittings at 34 stringer locations within the join where the wing attaches to the fuselage. The work is required to address the fact that the upper stringers of the wing-to-body join were not strong enough to meet US Federal Aviation Administration certification requirements for static strength. This pushed the airliner's planned first flight target from mid-2009 to year-end.

Having completed ZA001, Boeing says it expects to complete the installation on the 787 static-test airframe and the second fight-test aircraft in the coming days.

© Boeing

"Completing this work is a significant step toward first flight. We continue to be pleased with the progress of the team and remain confident the first flight of the 787 Dreamliner will occur before the end of the year," says Scott Fancher, vice-president and general manager of the 787 programme. "We will test the modification on the full-scale static test airframe later this month. As soon as we confirm the loads are being handled appropriately in the joint we will complete pre-flight activities on the airplane."

Once Boeing completes the modification on the static test airframe, the aircraft will be refitted with strain gauges and instrumentation required for testing. Additionally, access doors, systems, seals and fasteners removed from airplane one to provide access for the wing-to-body join fix are being restored to prepare for continued testing on the aircraft.

Once ZA001 is fully restored, the flight-test team plans to conclude another set of gauntlet and taxi tests to ensure the systems are ready for flight, which is targeted for late December.

Boeing holds more than 130 787 orders in the Middle East, with customers including Etihad Airways, Gulf Air, Kuwait Airways, Qatar Airways and Royal Jordanian, as well as lessors Alafco, Dubai Aerospace Enterprise and LCAL.

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