Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner made its 1000th flight on Wednesday February 23, marking yet a key milestone in the aircraft’s delayed flight test program.
Seven 787 development aircraft are currently participating in flight testing, with February 23’s landing of test aircraft ZA004 at Yuma International Airport counting as the 1000th official flight. The 787 program is near its 3000th hour of flying with more than one million miles under its belt.
Boeing vice president and general manager of the 787 program, Scott Fancher, said the test team was “making great progress”. “We are getting through the test conditions needed to certify this airplane with nearly 80 percent of the conditions for the first model, with Rolls-Royce engines, already complete. And, we’re more than 60 percent of the way through the test conditions for the 787s with General Electric engines,” Fancher.
787 Boeing Test & Evaluation chief pilot, Captain Mike Carriker, said the aircraft continued to behave well during the testing process. “We’re really eager to get this airplane through its flight testing so our customers can see for themselves this airplane’s excellent performance,” Carriker said.
