A view of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner Flight Deck
There has been so much excitement about seeing the first Boeing 787 take off and even the second. Now it is time for the third Dreamliner to get some attention. This morning I was invited to see the third Boeing 787 Dreamliner up close and personal. Besides Boeing staff and a few guest airlines, this was the first time outsiders have been allowed to see what’s so special on the inside. Boeing has never invited media on a test plane like this before and they made it clear that this was a still a testbed and wasn’t the final product.
Passengers are able to tint the windows using the button below them. This is a middle level tint.
It was exciting walking up the stairs of the third Dreamliner. The first thing I noticed when walking in was space. Yes, many of the seats were missing, but it seemed tall and roomy. I was quick to move over to the windows and try the electronic dimmers. Instead of shades, you are able to push a button and dim the window from clear to very dark. This is something that will likely entertain children (and aviation nerds) for a few hours on a flight. Getting up to see the flight deck was awesome. The display screens were much larger than I thought and the heads up display was an exciting addition. They even had a 787 Dreamliner emblem on the ceiling, which was a nice touch.
Notice how little room the overhead bins take. The white lighting can be programmed with different color options.
This Boeing 787 test plane only had a few economy seats for us to preview, no Business or First class ones. Boeing will provide a catalog of seats for airlines to choose from. Airlines must choose out of the Boeing catalog for economy seats, but do not for Business Class.
Most of the plane was lit in white, although the front had a nice blue glow to it. Boeing will suggest to airlines that they have the lights on blue when passengers load, since studies show it gives the feeling of space . They also suggest airlines go brighter for meal services, since food looks better when well lit (not sure if peanuts do though).
In the front and rear of the aircraft are crew bunk areas. The bunk areas are located above in the ceiling and have some narrow stairs to get access. They make me think of summer camp, but they at least provide an area away from the passengers where the crew can rest.
It was amazing being able to get so close to this Dreamliner. She looked great in her Boeing "light" livery.
One surprisingly neat part of the Boeing 787 was the lavatories. If you wave your hand in front of the sensor, they will flush and the seat will close. They also have a very spacious feel with the ability to customize the lighting.
The Dreamliner is an amazing aircraft. Even non-aviation nerds should feel a stark difference flying on this aircraft versus others. I think most people were impressed even with this pre-production model. I can’t wait to see her fully decked out.
Check out 120 pictures I took of the interior and the short video of the Boeing 787 Flight Deck
Some other great coverage of today:
* Check out Mary Kirby’s coverage over at RunwayGirl
* Video of the dimming windows and around the cabin from KOMO4
* Photos + Video from KING5 (check out -00:23 on the video. Yea that’s me with video camera in my mouth…oops)
* Harriet Baskas looks at the Dreamliner Gallery, then the interior
* Slide show from KIRO7
* Photos from the Seattle PI
* Things with Wings Guy Norris has great photos of the window tinting
Boeing 747-8 is set to make first flight on Monday February 8th
Jon Ostrower with Flight Blogger is reporting that Boeing will be shooting for their first flight of the Boeing 747-8 at 10am this Monday, February 8th. You better believe I will be there.
Of course weather could delay the flight so let’s all hope for sun!
ZA001 Boeing 787 Dreamliner during taxi tests on 12/12/09
This morning I have the wonderful opportunity to check out the inside of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. There will be a few of us there on Twitter putting up live pictures. To follow live check out #787cabin and @AirlineReporter. I will update my blog as the day goes along. If you have been curious about Twitter, this is your excuse to dive in 🙂 — you don’t need an account to watch.
UPDATE: I have posted my full write up, pictures and video on my newest blog, check it out!
The three Boeing 747-8 tails all lined up
Last Saturday, I decided to drive around Paine Field located in Everett, WA. I have done it before, but not since I started my blog. I wanted to see what planes I could see and how close I could get before hitting a fence. I was quite surprised with some of the views I found.
I took my camera and iPhone along and took pictures and thought you might be interested in what I saw:
* Great angle to see all three Boeing 747-8 tails lined up
* The first Boeing 727 with old United Airlines livery
* Two Eva Airlines Boeing 777’s
* Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 in special retro livery
The best part, it was all free and anyone can access all the areas I went. The day was gray and rainy, but well worth it. Turns out a Twitter follower, Kevin (@TxAgFlyer), followed the same path on Sunday and got some pretty nice pictures with the sky being blue and purple, instead of gray.
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Jeanne Grauberger, who was a TWA flight attendant from 1956 to 1962, was among those at the Lockheed L-1011 touched down.
Most airline enthusiasts have a special place in their hearts for the Lockheed L1011 Tristar. There aren’t too many airborne around the world today. You might be able to catch the Sand’s L1011 that they flight high rollers to and from Las Vegas or you could have been in Kansas City, Missouri on Saturday. That is where one L1011, that started life at TWA, made its last flight to the Airline History Museum.
At first it looked like “Elle” (the name of the L1011) was heading to the scrap heap. A generous donation by Paul Pristo helped to not only save Elle from being destroyed, but also making her airworthy to do the flight from the desert in Roswell, New Mexico to the museum in Missouri.
Originally the flight was supposed to occur back in April, but the FAA put a stop to the flight due to serious safety concerns. To get approval from the FAA, Elle had to satisfy 28 airworthiness directives. The L1011 had a complex history, starting life in the US, but also flew in Africa and South America, where maintenance rules are more lax. There was also concern about the rear wing spar having cracks, which is a common issue for these large planes. Planes that were flying in the US had modifications done, but since Elle was out of country she did not. Luckily there were no signs of cracking and after $60,000 of mechanical upgrades, she was ready to make the journey.
On Saturday, Elle was ready to go and so were her fans. The flight crew has stayed certified on the L1011 by training on a surviving simulator owned by Delta Air Lines in Atlanta. Because of the age and potential issues, the FAA required only essential personal be on the plane, it wasn’t fully pressurized, and it must fly lower and slower than normal.
The flight on Saturday went perfect. It was exciting for the guest gathered to see this wonderful airplane fly once again. Elle will be turned into a classroom for children to come to the museum to learn about airlines and flight. It seems like she has found a wonderful new home.
Thank you @user47 for the tip!
Additional Information:
* More pictures from KansasCity.com
* Videos from Airline History Museum
* 37 photos of Elle’s history on Airliners.net
Image: John Sleezer via KansasCity.com