Qatar Airways first Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the tarmac at the Farnborough Airshow.
At the Farnborough Air Show, Qatar Airways showed off their first Boeing 787 Dreamliner to an awestruck crowd.
When presenting the aircraft, Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker stated: ’œQatar Airways has been highly anticipating the arrival of our Boeing 787 aircraft at the Farnborough Air Show, and are proud to share this milestone with the world during the unveiling of our new Dreamliner.”
Welcome on board — entering the Qatar Boeing 787 Dreamliner for the first time.
I was excited to check out this Dreamliner. I have previously been in a few of ANA’s Boeing 787s and in one of JAL’s. How would Qatar’s 787 stack up?
Although ANA’s and JAL’s products were nice, Qatar really took the interior of their 787 to the next level — especially with their Business Class product.
The Business Class seats on the aircraft are laid out in a 1-2-1 format, where the 232 economy seats are in a 3-3-3 format.
Business Class seats on the Qatar Boeing 787 is very impressive.
This is the first Dreamliner we have seen in a 3-3-3 economy set up, where the ones previously have been a 2-4-2 layout. I was actually surprised how spacious the economy cabin felt, realizing that there was an extra seat in each row. I only sat in an economy seat for about a minute and it seemed fine, but a ten hour flight might be a bit different.
Each seat has an iTouch touch remote control, which accesses over 1000 entertainment options.
The Qatar economy is set up in a 9 abreast seating, but felt roomy.
The interior was quite impressive, but seeing Qatar’s Dreamliner flying at the airshow was even more so. Historically, Boeing has not flown any of their aircraft at the airshow, so this was a special treat.
Qatar’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner takes off.
Living just minutes away from Paine Field (where the 787 is built) I have seen plenty of 787 Dreamliners flying, but never like this. The 787 looked natural flying above Farnborough, completing aggressive maneuvers, showing off. Sure, there were no Tex Johnston style rolls, but it was still inspiring none-the-less.
It looked great on the ground, but a bit better in the air.
The 787 left Farnborough early to return back to Seattle to have the final touches done before being delivered to Qatar by early September. The airline has 60 787s on order and Boeing is expecting to deliver five of them to Qatar before the end of the year.
After delivery, Qatar plans to use their first 787 flying between Doha to London Heathrow.
ADDITIONAL QATAR AIRWAYS BOEING 787 PHOTOS (even more on Flickr):
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Boeing's third 787 Dreamliner ZA003 arrives in Dubai. Photo by Boeing.
Previously, Boeing’s third 787 Dreamliner, called ZA003, was a test bed for certifying the aircraft and only contained a partial interior. Now that the first two 787s have started operations with All Nippon Airways, Boeing decided to transfrom ZA003 from a testbed into a show horse. ZA003’s first stop is the Dubai Airshow, where she recently landed and showed off her new paint scheme containing 56 tail icons representing all the current Dreamliner customers.
HI-RESOLUTION (click for larger): The bar area, inside ZA003's entrance. Photo by Boeing.
Back in October, when Boeing reveled ZA003’s new livery in an updated Dreamliner livery, it was not clear what Boeing had in mind for the aircraft. Many assumed it would be used to promote the 787 and that is exactly what Boeing had in mind. ZA003 will be on display at the Dubai airshow from November 13th to 16th to drum up additional orders from airlines or heck, even private buyers — this is the middle east after all.
HI-RESOLUTION (click for larger): The new interior of ZA003. This is the first time seeing a 3-3-3 layout in the Dreamliner. Photo by Boeing.
Boeing has released some photos of ZA003’s new interior and I figured they were worth sharing. This is the first time seeing a real Dreamliner interior in a nine-abreast layout in economy. Both of ANA’s 787s have eight abreast in a 2-4-2 layout and ZA003 is set up in a 3-3-3 configuration.
Randy Tinseth, who is the Vice President, Marketing for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, stated on his blog, “For the first time that I’ve ever seen, the group turned right as they entered the door instead of turning left for the cockpit. That’s how excited they were to check out the interior of the airplane that we recently installed to highlight the passenger experience.”
Whoa, how things have changed. This is the inside of ZA003 taken in February 2010.
This is a huge improvement versus what the interior looked like previously. At the time, I remember thinking how great that ZA003’s interior first looked during my visit tour inside. Now, it looks quite lame, compared to it’s updated interior and that of ANA’s 787s.
So, where will ZA003 go next? Boeing is not quite saying. “As we’ve mentioned we have big plans for this airplane but we’re not quite ready to spell them out at this time,” Boeing spokesperson Scott Lefeber explained to AirlineReporter.com. “Planning for large events is complex and requires a great deal of integration. When we’re ready to make an announcement and provide you with meaningful details, we certainly will do that.”
No curtains needed. This is a Boeing paint hangar located at Paine Field and where the first ANA 787 Dreamliner was painted.
Since the outside and the inside of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner is so amazing, I wanted to divide the photo posts into two. Earlier, I posted the interior tour of ANA’s first Boeing 787 and now it is time to take a look at the outside. Media was invited by Boeing and ANA to experience the roll out of this historic aircraft. It might not have been the first 787 to fly (this is airplane #8, called ZA101), but it will be the first Dreamliner to carry passengers.
The 787 (JA801A) was slowly backed out of the paint hangar, bringing the new livery out into the sun for the first time.
ANA announced a special 787 livery that would go on their first two Dreamliners during the Paris Airshow. They showed off nice looking computer renderings, but of course it is hard to get a full feel of a new livery without seeing it in person (or seeing photos). Media folks were lined up waiting to watch the paint hangar doors open. With the sound of bells, the door slowly opened up, showing off the 787’s new paint scheme. I know on previous comments some of you have been skeptical of this special livery. It is a bit different, but I can tell you that it looks more amazing in person and I really like it.
The 787 got towed right over the media. Right on. Notice the birds flying overhead.
As the 787 Dreamliner was being towed into place I was doing video and social media (I had a great friend, Nick Smith, helping me out with photos) and I wasn’t realizing how close the plane was getting to us. I was sitting on the ground and the right engine passed with-in a few feet as the wing went over head. Even the non-aviation geek media couldn’t help but say how awesome that was. The lighting for photos wasn’t the best, but this is the standard way the tug pulls aircraft out of the paint hangar and Boeing didn’t want to risk changing how things are done with the first 787 to be delivered.
It is cool to think all the people that this Dreamliner will fly during its lifespan.
ANA’s first two 787 Dreamliners will have this livery and the other 53 they have on order will sport their standard livery. I was told these liveries will last the life of the paint, which is expected to be about five to six years before it will need to be re-painted. Unfortunately there was no update from Boeing or ANA on when this aircraft will officially be handed over to the airline. At this point, it is expected it should be delivered sometime in September and about a month after that ANA will put the aircraft into service.
Even the non aviation geeks will tell this is the 787.
* Check out the interior photo tour of ZA101
* See all 33 photos of the exterior of ANA’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner JA801A
This is ANA's new international business class staggered seat on display at Boeing's Delivery Center.
Step by step Boeing is getting closer to delivering their first 787 Dreamliner to All Nippon Airways (ANA). Today was a huge milestone with revealing the special livery and allow media, ANA employees and invited guests the opportunity to take a look at the inside. This first aircraft that will be delivered (ZA101 – JA801A) will fly domestically with-in Japan, so it has ANA’s new domestic interior. ANA is proud of their new international staggered business class, so they had a few seats on display at Boeing’s Delivery Center that we were able to preview before heading out to the hangar.
I decided to give the seat a shot. At 6’1″ 250lbs, I was hoping for the best. I have flown in ANA international business previously and I really enjoyed the old product. Honestly, I felt the new seats seemed a bit bland looking, but I was told they were designed to look futuristic. The older product has wood and really gives a warm feel, but I suspect the new product will look much better in the aircraft and it does provide a lot more privacy and space to store your things. It is hard to get the full feeling of the seat with only three in a row on display versus seeing it in staggered configuration inside an airplane. Because of that, I will reserve final judgement for testing it out on a future international ANA 787 flight (fingers crossed on that one) or possibly on the newer Boeing 777-300ERs that are also flying the new staggered business class.
The tinted windows on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner makes odd "mood" lighting in the cabin.
I have felt privileged to previously been able to take an interior tour of Boeing’s third 787 Dreamliner, ZA003, but that one did not have a full interior. This aircraft looked like it was ready to take on customers with a full interior and it had that new plane smell (which smells very similar to a new car smell). When first walking on the 787 you get a feeling of space — it is not just Boeing PR talk, it is true. There are literal reasons with the overhead bins providing more space and the fact that the 787’s cabin is about 2.5 feet wider than the 767. The 787 also has LED lighting in the ceiling that also gives a greater sense of height and space.
One window is clear, the other is darkened.
One of the many benefits of the 787 Dreamliner are the windows. Gone are the sunshades that either provide full light or complete darkness. The 787’s new smart-windows allow passengers to choose five different settings of tint. Even at the darkest setting, you are still able to see outside. The flight crew has control over all the windows at their computer station, giving them the ability to darken or lighten all the windows at the same time.
The best seats in the 787 Dreamliner are not in business class, but in the cockpit.
One cannot get a full interior tour, without a visit to the flight deck, which holds the best seats in the house. You could tell this 787 was new since there was protective plastic that was still on controls and displays around the cockpit. The pilots have an array of technology to make flying the aircraft easier and safer. Not only are there large screens that can easily show everything that is going on with the aircraft, but there are also Heads Up Displays (HUD) that allow the pilots to look out the front windscreen, while still seeing vital aircraft information like speed and altitude.
The center lavatory had a window. Notice the protective blue film still on the mirrors.
One of the most interesting features on the aircraft were the lavatories. First off, ANA has decided to offer female only lavatories, meaning that most restrooms will have an image of a male and female, but others will display a single female image. On this aircraft, the central lavatory had a window and the only shade on the aircraft. There is a dimming switch, but for those who want total privacy, you are able to pull down the shade. For those who are used to a certain level of service in the restroom, do not worry, each toilet has a bidet with special male and female settings.
Looking to the back of the Dreamliner in Economy.
Since this was a 787 created for shorthaul flights, it has a small business class section and then economy in the rear of the aircraft. ANA was originally planning an economy-plus type section, but have decided not to implement that in this 787 for now.
Here I am talking with Ryosei Nomura, who is Senior Manager of Public Relations based in Japan, about my thoughts on the new interior.
One of the interior updates are the fixed back shell economy seats. Those are the type that you can still push your button and the bottom part will move forward, but your actual seatback will not recline. This is to help save space for those behind you. Talking to some ANA folks, they stated they have received some negative feedback, but I really like the concept of the seats. I am one that will rarely reclines my seat out of consideration of those behind me and I hate it when I am working on my laptop and the person in front of me puts back their seat. With the seat in the “reclined” position, my knees were hitting the seat on front of me, but I was assured the longer haul economy will have a larger seat-pitch. But with my seat “un-reclined” I had no problems. Since it is not as obviously if your seat is reclined, each seat has an indicator on the head rest which will quickly show the flight crew if the seat is in proper position for take off or landing.
ANA has decided to provide a double armrest in the middle of their 787 Dreamliners.
The first aircraft in domestic configuration is laid out with 12 business class seats in a 2-2-2 layout and 252 economy in a 2-4-2 layout. The short-haul international configuration will contain 42 business class seats and only 180 economy. The long-haul international ANA 787 will fly 46 of the new business class staggered seat and 112 economy, providing more seat-pitch than the domestic aircraft. One aspect of ANA’s economy that wasn’t at first obvious was the center armrests. No one likes to be sitting in the middle of a 2-4-2 layout, but ANA gives passengers a double arm rest in the middle, making the it less painful to have that middle seat.
For the average passenger, it might not be totally obvious they are in a new 787 Dreamliner. However, they should notice that there is something different, something better about the aircraft. For those of us who know airplanes, it is very obvious this is a next-generation airliner. Yes, the 787 has been delayed three years, but once people start flying on them, I doubt many will care. I cannot wait for this to become the new standard in world travel. A big thanks to Boeing and ANA for holding this event and inviting AirlineReporter.com along for the ride.
* See an exterior photo tour of ANA’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner
* Check out all 39 787 interior tour photos on my Flickr
