EVERETT, Wash., Nov. 5, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing (NYSE: BA) has completed the power on sequence for the new 747-8 Intercontinental. This milestone enables the program to begin functional tests on the airplane.

“This is a critical step in the assembly process for the new 747-8 Intercontinental,” said Elizabeth Lund, 747 deputy program manager, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “The airplane’s systems are now live. This milestone is a reflection of the focus and hard work of our engineers, mechanics and suppliers.”

Power on is a complex series of tasks that methodically energize and activate the airplane’s systems. In this critical stage of the assembly process, the electrical, hydraulic and pneumatic systems are brought on line.

Mechanics connected the 747-8 to an external power cart to energize the flight-deck display and maintenance systems. The electricity coursing through the airplane’s 133 miles (214 km) of wire will be as high as 105 kilovoltampere (kVa).

The program also activated the airplane’s hydraulic and pneumatic systems. Pressurized to 3,000 pounds per square inch (psi), the hydraulics power the flight control surfaces, landing gear, brakes and steering systems. The 160 psi applied to the pneumatic system enables the airplane to operate the environmental control systems and the leading-edge flaps.

“We are very methodical in ensuring the integrity of the airplane’s systems,” said Todd Zarfos, vice president of 747 engineering, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “This accomplishment is a key milestone in validating the design, installation and functionality of the electrical, hydraulic and pneumatic systems.”

A video that gives you an inside look at the power on sequence is available at http://bit.ly/dlXgym.

The program is expected to complete assembly of the 747-8 Intercontinental in the first quarter of 2011. The airplane is scheduled to enter service in late 2011 following the flight test program.

The 747-8, which includes the 747-8 Intercontinental and the 747-8 Freighter, was launched in November 2005. Boeing has 109 orders for the 747-8 — 33 for the 747-8 Intercontinental and 76 for the 747-8 Freighter. The first 747-8 Intercontinental is scheduled to deliver in late 2011.

The new 747-8 Intercontinental offers the lowest operating costs and best economics of any large passenger airplane, while providing enhanced environmental performance. The 747-8 provides new revenue opportunities that allow airlines to maximize profits. Eighteen feet longer than the 747-400, the 747-8 has 51 additional seats to accommodate 467 passengers in a typical three-class configuration, and it also offers 26 percent more cargo volume.

SEATTLE, Nov. 3, 2010 / — Boeing today announced the availability of a rotable exchange services program, that will support the operation of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. This program will help airline customers reduce inventory costs by providing access to a Boeing-managed inventory pool of parts that is available to ship within 24 hours of request.

“The 787 Rotables Exchange Services Program will provide a dedicated pool of high-value, dispatch-critical parts for airlines, while helping them to improve operations support and cash flow,” said Dale Wilkinson, vice president, Material Services for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “The program manages configuration, warranty and reliability for the covered parts, freeing the airline to focus on passengers and the operation of the airplane.”

The exchange program is available to support initial entry into service for 787 operators – this is the first time that such a program has been developed in conjunction with entry into service of a new fleet type.

With the Boeing 787 Rotable Exchange Program, the airline removes a part from the airplane and ships it for exchange with a new unit from Boeing’s exchange pool. Boeing plans to support up to 600 high-value rotable parts, including such items as the Auxiliary Power Unit and Variable Frequency Starter Generator. By providing coverage for parts typically priced in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, the exchange program can provide considerable inventory cost savings for airlines.

The program provides a flight-hour cost basis that enables the customer to better forecast maintenance costs, while spreading out high-cost expenditures for rotable parts over the 10-year term of the agreement.

MOSCOW, Oct. 29 — Boeing and the State Corporation Rostechnology today announced the finalization of an order for 50 Next-Generation 737 airplanes. The order includes purchase rights for an additional 35 Next-Generation 737s. The State Corporation’s Supervisory Board approved the definitive agreement that was signed and announced on Sept. 17 during the Sochi Investment Forum in Russia. The order is valued at $3.7 billion at average list prices. Rostechnology’s order includes 15 Next-Generation 737-700s, 25 737-800s and 10 737-900ERs (extended range). 

"The order of Next-Generation 737s by Rostechnology represents a substantial investment in our future and will accelerate the significant progress we are making in improving the global competitiveness and efficiency of our airline industry," said Roman Pakhomov, chief executive officer of Aviation Capital Services, aviation leasing division of Rostechnology. "This agreement continues to build upon the strategic partnership between Rostechnology and Boeing."

The economic benefits, comfort and operating efficiencies consistently demonstrated by the Next-Generation 737 directly support Rostechnology’s plan to provide Russian airlines with efficient and reliable airplanes that will help them profitably grow domestic and international operations.

"This is a great day in the history of our long and enduring partnership with Rostechnology," said Marlin Dailey, vice president of Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "Today’s order for 737-700s, 737-800s and 737-900ERs underscores Rostechnology’s confidence in the world’s most successful single-aisle airplane. The entire Next-Generation 737 family offers superior operating economics and the 737-900ER has the best seat mile cost of any single-aisle airplane and provides our Next-Generation 737 customers with a compelling low-risk growth opportunity."

Rostechnology 737s will be delivered with the all-new 737 Boeing Sky Interior. Inspired by the passenger experience, it promises to redefine the 737 travel experience. In addition to the new design, Boeing also announced a performance improvement package offering a 2 percent reduction in fuel consumption through various airframe and engine improvements.

Over the past 20 years, Boeing’s joint programs in Russia have resulted in almost $6 billion in highly successful joint projects with its Russian partners making Boeing the largest international aerospace investor in Russia.

Boeing announced in September that its production rate for the Next-Generation 737 program will increase from the current rate of 31.5 airplanes per month to 35 in early 2012 and to 38 airplanes per month in the second quarter of 2013.

SEATTLE, Oct. 27 — Boeing and Dubai-based flydubai today celebrated delivery of the first Next-Generation 737 with the new, passenger-inspired Boeing Sky Interior.

“The superior passenger experience of this exciting new interior is the result of many years’ work by Boeing employees and suppliers,” said Beverly Wyse, 737 vice president and general manager. “Our airline customers will draw value from the many practical improvements we have made in the new design.”

Since the Next-Generation 737 was introduced in 1997, customers have taken advantage of continuous improvements to this best-selling airplane that have made it ever more efficient, reliable and passenger-friendly. Boeing Sky Interior is the latest in a series of improvements to the airplane. The next to come will be a package of performance improvements that will reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions by 2 percent – making the airplane a full 7 percent more efficient than the first Next-Generation 737 delivered. The performance improvements to the airframe and engine are beginning certification test soon, and will be fully in service by early 2012.

With the new 737 Boeing Sky Interior, airlines will welcome their passengers into a cabin featuring modern, sculpted sidewalls and window reveals. The ingenious design of the new, larger stow bins allows them to accommodate even more bags than before, while taking up less space in the cabin. The innovative assist mechanism of the new bins gives easy access, and as they pivot up and out of the way, there is much more headroom around the aisle seats and a greater sense of space in the cabin.

Airlines will select from different lighting schemes that range from a welcoming, soft blue overhead sky simulation to a calm, relaxing, pallet of sunset colors.

LEDs (light emitting diodes) are brighter and replace incandescent signage, attendant and halogen reading lights. With an estimated 40,000 hours between replacements, LEDs last 10 times longer than the previous standard of lights.

Other features that passengers particularly will appreciate are a quieter cabin, intuitive placement of switches and call buttons, and improved sound quality and clarity through new speakers in each passenger row.

“We are very proud to be the first to offer our passengers an enhanced onboard experience with the brand new Boeing Sky Interior,” said Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO, flydubai. “We have achieved much in our first 16 months of service and will continue to bring our passengers the best product offerings on one of the newest 737 fleets in service.” The airplane, a Next-Generation 737-800, will enter service in November.

A total of 46 airlines and leasing companies have ordered the 737 Boeing Sky Interior for more than 1,200 of their airplanes. flydubai is the first of five airlines that will receive Next-Generation 737s with the new interior this year.

CHICAGO, Oct. 21 Boeing Vice President, Environment and Aviation Policy, Billy M Glover, issued the following statement in the wake of today’s announcement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Federal Aviation Administration that the two agencies have agreed to work together to bring sustainable biofuels into production for the aviation industry.

“Today’s announcement is welcome news for the commercial aviation industry, which sees sustainable biofuels as a key element of its plan to lower its carbon emissions. Through test flights with a number of our customers, we have proven that fuels made from plant matter and algae can power jet aircraft safely and efficiently, and we look forward in the months ahead to the approval of these fuels for commercial use. The challenge then will be to prime the production pump, and bring biofuels to an attractive price point for airlines.

Boeing is currently working with the USDA and the Air Transport Association on the Farm-to-Fly initiative, which seeks to encourage the production of sustainable aviation biofuels through U.S. agricultural policy. The USDA-FAA partnership will further help in that regard. We applaud their efforts and look forward to working with them to commercialize biofuels that can help the aviation industry meet its aggressive carbon reduction goals.”

ATLANTA, Oct. 20 — Boeing Business Jets today announced the first certification and installation of Panasonic Avionics Corporation’s in-flight wireless high-speed broadband service, eXConnect, on a Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) 737 aircraft.

As part of the installation agreement, Panasonic will use the privately owned BBJ for ongoing testing and validation, as well as for live demonstrations. The system supports a wide range of passenger and crew applications including very high-speed internet access to passengers anywhere in the world at speeds of up to 50 Mbps to the aircraft. That’s about 100 times the speed of the fastest Internet currently available on airplanes.

“The eXConnect system installed on the Boeing 737 continues to exceed our expectations, and we are very excited to show customers, OEMs and other groups the true broadband experience made possible by our Ku solution,” said Paul Margis, Chief Executive Officer, Panasonic Avionics Corporation.

The fuselage-mounted antenna communicates through a global network of satellites and provides higher data rates than tail-mounted antennas traditionally used on business aviation aircraft. The BBJ is ideally suited for carrying a larger and more capable antenna than traditional sized business jets so global coverage is possible.

“Since its introduction to the market, the Boeing Business Jet has always provided something more than the traditional corporate jet manufacturers have been able to provide – more space, more comfort, more productivity and more utility,” said Boeing Business Jets president Steve Taylor.

“Panasonic’s new high-speed data system opens up a new capability to our customers that will help satisfy the growing need for passengers to be connected all the time, including in the air,” said Taylor.

ATLANTA, Oct. 18 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing (NYSE: BA) Business Jets today announced that the Rockwell Collins Enhanced Vision System (EVS) was certified last week by the Federal Aviation Administration on a Boeing Business Jet (BBJ), an Air National Guard C-40. The Rockwell Collins EVS is available to current and future BBJ operators as a post-production modification.

The EVS capability enhances situational awareness for pilots during approach, landing, taxi and takeoff by presenting an image of the external environment on the Head-up Guidance System (HGS) and head-down displays.

The system uses an infrared sensor to improve the pilots’ view of the runway in various conditions including bad weather. This aids pilots to avoid terrain and clearly identify the runway, including any obstructions, early in the approach. It also assists pilots with “black hole” approaches to airports not equipped with precision landing aids and with landing and maneuvering at unfamiliar airports.

“I had the pleasure of flying several of the flights during the EVS development flight-test program with the Air National Guard and the Rockwell Collins team. That experience gave me the chance to see the EVS advantages first hand,” said Steve Taylor, Boeing Business Jets president.

“Given the variety of destinations visited by most BBJ operators, the improved situational awareness that EVS provides can be a great advantage,” said Taylor.

“The truly collaborative effort between Rockwell Collins, Boeing, the Air National Guard and the entire development team has made EVS a reality for BBJ owners and operators who have been eagerly awaiting this capability,” said David Austin, senior director, HGS for Rockwell Collins.

Installation of the EVS system on BBJs requires that the airplanes receive an upgrade to the HGS 4000, a modified radome, and the infrared camera.

The EVS system will be demonstrated on the Air National Guard BBJ at DeKalb Peachtree Airport during the National Business Aviation Association convention, Oct. 19-22, 2010.

EVERETT, Wash., Oct. 15 — Boeing moved closer this week toward completing assembly of the first 747-8 Intercontinental as mechanics in Everett, Wash., loaded the forward and aft fuselage sections to join with the wing and center section.

The 747-8 fuselage is 250 feet 2 inches (76.3 meters) long, which is 18 feet 4 inches (5.6 meters) longer than the 747-400. The stretch provides space for 51 additional seats to accommodate 467 passengers in a typical three-class configuration and offers 26 percent more cargo volume.

"Final body join is an important milestone for the 747 program," said Pat Shanahan, vice president and general manager of Airplane Programs in Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "It is a major step toward completing the structural integration and building out our all-new interior. We now have the first real look at the size and distinctive shape of the 747-8 Intercontinental. This is going to be a superb airplane for our customers both from an aesthetic and a performance perspective."

The 747-8 is the new high-capacity 747 that will give airlines the lowest operating costs and best economics of any large airplane while providing enhanced environmental performance. The airplane also features a 787 Dreamliner-inspired interior that will offer passengers a greater feeling of space and comfort.

The 747 program has orders for 109 747-8 Freighter and Intercontinental airplanes. Thirty-three of those are for the 747-8 Intercontinental, with orders coming from Lufthansa, Korean Air and eight VIP customers. The first 747-8 Intercontinental delivery is scheduled for late 2011 to a VIP customer.