Area Development News Desk (12/11/2008)
Boeing will further delay the launch of its 787 Dreamliner airplane,
which had been scheduled for its first test flight sometime this
quarter. The company says the first flight of the commercial aircraft
is now scheduled for the second quarter of 2009, with delivery planned
for the first quarter of 2010. Previous plans had called for the planes
to be delivered during the third quarter of next year. According to the
Boeing statement, "The new schedule reflects the impact of disruption
caused by the recent machinists' strike, along with the requirement to
replace certain fasteners in early production airplanes." The New York Times
quotes senior company executives as saying the plane is also over the
weight at which Boeing planned to fly it and that there are other
problems with the plane's structure, which features a fuselage made
from composite materials rather than aluminum. The airplane was
originally scheduled to begin service with All Nippon Airways in May of
this year. Bloomberg News reports that the Boeing currently has 895
orders for the Dreamliner, valued at approximately $155 billion.
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