Boeing has completed the legal delivery of the first 787-9 to launch customer Air New Zealand on schedule on 30 June, the company says.

The legal milestone comes 10 days before Air New Zealand accepts the new aircraft in a ceremony at the Boeing factory in Everett, Washington, on 9 July.

The Rolls-Royce Trent 1000-powered aircraft is the first of 10 787-9s on order by the Star Alliance carrier and the first of 413 aircraft ordered overall.

The 787-9 was one of three original variants in the Dreamliner family that Boeing launched in 2003. The short-haul 787-3 was cancelled in 2008, but the 787-8 entered service in October 2011.

Boeing passed the firm configuration milestone on the 787-9 nearly four years ago in September 2010.

The first flight test aircraft achieved first flight on 17 September 2013.

Source: Cirium Dashboard