Jaunted - Tag: Boeing

Boeing Strike Delays V Australia Launch

pbb — 2008-10-02T09:38:01-05:00

Machinists at Boeing's Everett, Washington factory have been on strike for nearly a month, extending seemingly endless delays on the 787--and on the three 777s V Australia ordered for its first flights. The new carrier, an offshoot of Virgin Blue, will now move its launch date back from December 15 to February 28, 2009 and hope that its planes are ready by then.

There are a couple of options for passengers who booked one of the now-canceled flights. You can call up for a full refund, or the carrier will book you on another airline, if you need to fly. A third option: V Australia will rebook passengers on a flight "on or after March 1, 2009" and toss in a $200 voucher for another Virgin Blue flight.

If the strike comes to an end soon--though The Seattle Times says that ain't likely--V Australia says it will move its launch date back up. As for all the money the carrier will lose because of the strike, a press release ominously declares:

The impact of the serious delay would be addressed between Virgin Blue and The Boeing Company at a later date.

Related Stories:
· Boeing Strike Delays Launch of V Australia [MarketWatch]
· V Australia on Track for First Flights in '08 [Jaunted]
· Red Tape Worries V Australia [Jaunted]

Air China Didn't Get the Memo

pbb — 2008-07-17T11:33:55-05:00

The near-term future of Chinese aviation is all about smaller planes, so when Air China needed some big jets, it had to look elsewhere. The state-owned carrier just announced that it plans to buy 45 new aircraft from Boeing, growing its fleet by 35 percent with the purchase.

Most of the new 777s and 737s will fly out of Beijing, further entrenching the airline at PEK. (You know the flag carrier gets that sweet real estate in T3.) Also on the horizon for Air China are 15 787s, if and when those next-generation jets roll off the line.

What we're still wondering about, though, is when these new planes will be delivered. After all, another carrier just jumped to the front of the Boeing production queue.

Related Stories:
· Air China Announces $6.3 Billion Deal [AP, via Google]
· Happily Welcoming Our New Chinese Aviation Overlords [Jaunted]
· Boeing coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of Air China's Olympics livery: Wikimedia]

Boeing's Dreamliner Not Happening Until 2009

juliana — 2008-01-16T16:00:01-05:00

Yes, Dreamliners in 2008 was just a dream.

The eagerly anticipated Dreamliner airplane from Boeing (also known as the 787) won't be in service until sometime in 2009.

Test flights for the massive plane were delayed again until July, the second such delay for the Dreamliner. Deliveries won't happen until early 2009, meaning you won't fly one of these bad boys 'til mid-2009 at the earliest.

Production delays and parts shortages are mostly to blame for the push-back.

Boeing is building more than half of the plane with carbon- fiber composites instead of aluminum, making it the first airliner of its kind. The Dreamliner is also Boeing's first attempt at a production process where suppliers deliver fully completed wing and fuselage parts.

"Completing the first plane is setting the pace to first flight,'' 787 program manager Pat Shanahan said on the call.``If anything has been learned here, it's how long it will take to complete somebody else's work. We thought we could modify our final assembly system to accommodate suppliers' work. We were wrong.''

Meanwhile Airbus SAS has some company in the mega-airplane delays department. Their widebody A350 (an answer to the Dreamliner) won't deliver until 2013. But at least they still have the A380.

[Photo: Life of Luxury]

Adventures of Link: Countdown to the A380

pbb — 2007-10-11T17:00:01-05:00

We should all fit on board, right?

Singapore Airlines' first flight of the superjumbo A380 takes off in a little over two weeks, and Airbus must be chilling the champagne. After years of delays, controversy and throwing money down what seemed to be a bottomless pit, the aerospace company can now focus on selling these planes rather than building them.

In the meantime, Boeing is still struggling to get its 787 off the ground. After taking more than 800 orders, the firm has pushed the first deliveries back to late 2008. That said, airlines are still on board to use Boeing's new, high-tech jet, which has a range of over 10,000 miles and, perhaps more importantly, gets great gas mileage.

Related Stories:
· The Giant on the Runway [Economist]
· Boeing Delays Dreamliner [WSJ]
· Delta Adding New Seats and TVs to its Transcons [Official Site]
· iPhones Don't Fly with ATA [Consumerist]
· Steve Fossett and his Plane Still Missing [AP, via Google]

[Photo: af.wikipedia.org]

Everett: Adventures of Link: Boeing 787 Takes Seattle

markj — 2007-07-09T16:58:34-05:00

The revolution will be at 35,000 feet, if Boeing Dreamliner has anything to say about it. While we are taking a wait-for-the-August-test-flights approach to this whole 787 craze, there were plenty of airlines that thought Boeing's big bird and pony show was worth a multi-million dollar airplane order check.

Qantas, Air New Zealand, Virgin Atlantic, and All Nippon Airways, who will bet the first to offer 787 commercial service in May 2008 all bought what Boeing was selling.

The plane seats up to 330 passengers and is capable of flying long-haul routes using up to 20% less fuel.

Here is what the web thought of McDreamliner:
·   Photos of 787 [MSNBC]
·   Brokaw Master of Ceremonies, Yamamoto Biggest Applause [FT]
·   Dreamliner is Evolutionary Rather Than Revolutionary [Chicago Tribune]
·   Qantas A Confirmed Buyer [Reueters]
·   Dreamliner Videos Galore [Technorati]

[Photo: seattlec2]

Everett: Boeing Dreamliner Makes Emperor Palpatine Style Entrance

markj — 2007-07-09T10:43:24-05:00

Yesterday, on 7.8.07, Boening's new 787 Dreamliner debuted in Everett Washington in a scene that reminded us of the Emperor's arrival on the Death Star at the beginning of Return of the Jedi. Point being, it was definitely an odd scene. Don't believe us? Just watch the video above.

To date, Boeing has won 677 order for the 787, on deliveries through 2015. Air Berlin, Kuwait Airways, and All Nippon Airways are amongst the buyers.

The 787, Boeing's first all-new jet since airlines started flying the 777 in 1995, will be the world's first large commercial airplane made mostly of carbon-fiber composites, which are lighter, heftier, and don't rust as easily--sounds fair enough. .

The Dreamliner is scheduled to enter service in the spring of 2008 and the first test flights will take place in late August or early September of this year.

Stay Tuned.

Related Stories:
· Dreamliner Coverage [Jaunted]
· Dreamliner Official Site [Jaunted]

Seattle: Boeing Buys Your Ticket at the Experience Music Project

djk — 2007-01-11T14:20:20-05:00

Boeing is sure in a good mood after the whole A380 delay debacle. The schadenfreude has got them so sauced up, they're keeping up their offer to pay your way through Seattle. Well, they'll pay for a bit of it.

On the first Thursday of every month, Boeing sponsors All Access Nights at the Experience Music project, when admission is free from 5-8 p.m. It's the perfect time to visit, because tickets are otherwise a whopping $19.95. Not a big surprise for this type of place, but a bummer nonetheless for those who just want to rock or whatever.

Permanent installations at the EMP include a Jimi Hendrix exhibit, the Sound Lab recording studio, and an experience called On Stage that'll let you play rock star and simulate the experience of playing an arena in front of thousands of fans. Hookers 'n' blow not included with freebie tickets.

[Photo: ringey]

Related Stories:
· All Access Nights at EMP/SFM [EMP]