May 16, 2007

Where in the world is the 787 Dreamliner?

UPDATED: May 16 - 4:56pm EDT (updates are in blue)
The manufacturing of the 787 is truly a global effort, with parts from suppliers for the Dreamliner being created on either side of the planet. As the roll-out of the 787 approaches on the 8th of July, all parts will find their way aboard three modified 747-400s (N780BA and N747BC, N249BA) to the Boeing Factory in Everett for final assembly. This particular post will be periodically be updated leading up to 7-8-07 to provide updates on the manufacturing and delivery of major Dreamliner parts.
UNCONFIRMED: Main landing gear will be delivered the week of May 14. Main landing gear will be delivered to Everett by May 18th at the latest. Trent 1000s should be delivered by June 1.

The first 787 will be painted in the house Dreamliner livery with the tail painted in the ANA livery.

Section 41
Manufactured at Spirit Aerosystems in Wichita, KS, the forward nose section of the 787 was presented to the public on the 24th of April. 4/24 Photos here LCF2 was seen departing Everett at 10:30 am PDT to fly to Kansas on May 9. (Photo 1, Photo 2) Section 41 was picked up in Wichita on May3 9 by LCF2 N780BA on Boeing 632 then flown to Charleston. Section 41 arrived in Everett on May 11.

Section 44 and 46
The center fuselage barrels (section 44 and 46) were produced in Grottaglie, Italy at Alenia Aeronautica and delivered by N780BA on March 23, 2007 to Vought Global Aeronautica’s facility in Charleston. (Photo 2, Photo 3, Photo 4)

Section 45/11 (Center Wheel Well/Center Wing Tank)
Section 43

Section 43(Photo 2),45/11 arrived from Nagoya, Japan (Photo 2) on Dreamlifter N747BC on January 15, 2007 in Charleston, SC.

Center Fuselage (Assembled Section 11, 43, 44, 45, 46)
Flown from Charleston and delivered to Everett on May 16. Photo and video of the unloading from KIRO. Boeing release and photo.


Section 47 and 48
Completed production at Vought in South Carolina, Section 47 and 48, the aft part of the 787 is scheduled to be shipped to Everett in early May. Vought rolled out (Seattle P-I Article) completed Sections 47 and 48 on Tuesday May 8 in preparation for delivery to Everett. (Photo Courtesy Vought Aircraft Industries) (photo 1, photo 2, photo 3, photo 4, photo 5, photo 6, photo 7) After picking up Section 41 in Wichita, LCF2 flew to Charleston to load Section 47/48. Departure from Charleston was at 4:49am EDT on May 11 on Boeing 632, with a touchdown at Paine Field at 6:48am PDT. Sunrise arrival! Watch the arrival video.

1st Unloading shot from Matt Cawby
2nd Unloading shot from Boeing
Associated Press Photos (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)

Tail Cone
Korean Air Aerospace (KAL-ASD) is manufacturing the tail cone in Busan, South Korea. It will be shipped from South Korea to Everett, and will be joined with Section 48 and the Hamilton Sundstrand APU which finished cold weather testing in Alaska in early March 2007. The tailcone was delivered to Everett on the evening of May 9.

Wings
"We're at the final stage of completing the first wings," says Takashi Fujimoto, head of 787 production at Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Delivery from Nagoya to Everett is planned for mid-May. (Photo 1, Photo 2) The wings were presented in a ceremony at MHI in Nagoya and loaded onto the Dreamlifter on May 13. (Photo 1, Photo 2) Wings were delivered to Everett on the morning of May 15. Image courtesy KIRO and 16 shot slideshow. Boeing news release and photo.


Wingtips
According to Boeing, the wingtips have arrived in Everett after delivery from KAL-ASD in South Korea.

Landing Gear

Nose gear currently installed in Section 41 in Wichita. Nose gear was revealed April 13. Body gear most likely at Messier-Dowty awaiting shipment to Everett and installation in Section 45 from Montreal, Canada.

Horizontal Stabilizer
Arrived in Everett as first major assembly piece to be delivered to the Boeing Factory in Washington. The tail, which was built by Alenia, was shipped using N780BA from Grottaglie in southern Italy via a refueling stop in Scotland on April 24, 2007.

Vertical Fin
Tail fin presented to an audience in Frederickson, Washington on March 14, 2007. (Photo 1, Photo 2) The vertical fin was shipped down the road from Frederickson to Everett on the evening of May 7 for eventual mating with the rudder.

Engines
The first Rolls Royce Trent 1000 engines are set to fly on a 747 test bed in mid-May. The first prototype test engines have successfully undergone testing, including the crucial blade-off test in mid-April. The first certified pair will be delivered in time for final assembly.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

http://fleetbuzz.wordpress.com/

Theres some more pics from Vought above.

Great blog you got there. :)

Anonymous said...

great blog dude. keep up the work

Anonymous said...

There's a good assembly video on the Rolls website here:

http://www.rolls-royce.com/civil_aerospace/products/airlines/trent1000/default.jsp

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