1 day ago The fourth 777X test unit had hit the air for the first time in September. The quartet will prove vital for Boeing as it seeks to commit to its new introduction date. Simple Flying reached out to Boeing for further details on this 777X cold soak in Alaska. A spokesperson for the airline shared the following. After a delay due to unfavorable weather, Boeing's newest airliner, the 777X, looked poised to make its first flight Saturday. 'Weather is looking good today so the #777X may fly,' the company.
Today, Boeing has confirmed that it won’t be delivering its first 777-9 aircraft until late 2023. The first delivery was initially planned to have taken place last year. However, the program has faced multiple delays along the way.
Boeing has delayed the first 777X deliveries until late 2023. Photo: Getty Images
The first deliveries of the Boeing 777X had been planned to take place in 2020, although this didn’t happen. Last year Boeing confirmed that the aircraft wouldn’t be delivered until 2022. However, the program has now slipped again until late 2023. Recently Emirates’ President Tim Clark mentioned that his first 777X delivery could slip to 2024.
Certification requirements delaying delivery
Boeing is now expecting to deliver its first 777X aircraft in late 2023. Given how far out this is, the American manufacturer isn’t specifying a more detailed time frame than this. Boeing pointed to several factors that led to its decision to delay the project.
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Firstly, Boeing cited “an updated assessment of certification requirements based on ongoing communication with civil aviation authorities” as a reason for the delay. However, they also mentioned, “an updated assessment of market demand based on continued dialogue with customers, resulting adjustments to production rates and the program accounting quantity.”
Lufthansa was due to be the launch customer of the 777X last year. Photo: Lufthansa
Finally, Boeing also mentioned “increased change incorporation costs, and associated customer and supply chain impacts.”
How will this impact customers
The delay will clearly impact customers who are expecting the aircraft. However, it could actually be a blessing in disguise for many, given the current circumstances. As Boeing mentioned, “discussions with its customers with respect to aircraft delivery timing” had impacted its timeline. Its major customers are likely to be onboard with the delay.
German flag carrier Lufthansa had been due to take the first of the 777-9 aircraft. Lufthansa has frequently revealed that it will need to make significant fleet adjustments to deal with the current crisis’s fallout. This has seen the airline sending many long-haul aircraft to long-term storage. Some of these may never return. As the airline isn’t using the aircraft it already has, it has no immediate need for new long-haul aircraft. Simple Flying has contacted Lufthansa for comment.
Boeing has said that 777/777X production will continue at a pace of two a month. Photo: Boeing
Emirates was also due to be one of the first airlines to take delivery of the 777X. It had previously told how it expected its first aircraft in 2023 or even 2024, suggesting that they were in on Boeing’s discussions.
British Airways was expected to take its first 777X in 2022. The delay will mean that British Airways won’t get its aircraft as planned, and maybe not until 2024. However, when contacted by Simple Flying, an IAG spokesperson declined to comment on the delay.
What do you make of the delay to the 777X program? When will the first 777X be delivered? Let us know what you think and why in the comments.
_(cropped).jpg "Boeing 777x first flight webcam")
Boeing has delayed the first 777X deliveries until late 2023. Photo: Getty Images
The first deliveries of the Boeing 777X had been planned to take place in 2020, although this didn’t happen. Last year Boeing confirmed that the aircraft wouldn’t be delivered until 2022. However, the program has now slipped again until late 2023. Recently Emirates’ President Tim Clark mentioned that his first 777X delivery could slip to 2024.
Certification requirements delaying delivery
Boeing is now expecting to deliver its first 777X aircraft in late 2023. Given how far out this is, the American manufacturer isn’t specifying a more detailed time frame than this. Boeing pointed to several factors that led to its decision to delay the project.
Stay informed: Sign up for our daily aviation news digest.
Firstly, Boeing cited “an updated assessment of certification requirements based on ongoing communication with civil aviation authorities” as a reason for the delay. However, they also mentioned, “an updated assessment of market demand based on continued dialogue with customers, resulting adjustments to production rates and the program accounting quantity.”
Lufthansa was due to be the launch customer of the 777X last year. Photo: Lufthansa
Finally, Boeing also mentioned “increased change incorporation costs, and associated customer and supply chain impacts.”
How will this impact customers
The delay will clearly impact customers who are expecting the aircraft. However, it could actually be a blessing in disguise for many, given the current circumstances. As Boeing mentioned, “discussions with its customers with respect to aircraft delivery timing” had impacted its timeline. Its major customers are likely to be onboard with the delay.
German flag carrier Lufthansa had been due to take the first of the 777-9 aircraft. Lufthansa has frequently revealed that it will need to make significant fleet adjustments to deal with the current crisis’s fallout. This has seen the airline sending many long-haul aircraft to long-term storage. Some of these may never return. As the airline isn’t using the aircraft it already has, it has no immediate need for new long-haul aircraft. Simple Flying has contacted Lufthansa for comment.
Boeing has said that 777/777X production will continue at a pace of two a month. Photo: Boeing
Emirates was also due to be one of the first airlines to take delivery of the 777X. It had previously told how it expected its first aircraft in 2023 or even 2024, suggesting that they were in on Boeing’s discussions.
British Airways was expected to take its first 777X in 2022. The delay will mean that British Airways won’t get its aircraft as planned, and maybe not until 2024. However, when contacted by Simple Flying, an IAG spokesperson declined to comment on the delay.
What do you make of the delay to the 777X program? When will the first 777X be delivered? Let us know what you think and why in the comments.
Article Source simpleflying.com
Four hours after its historic 10:09 a.m. departure from Everett, Washington, Boeing’s newest and longest twin-aisle airplane, the 777X, successfully completed its first flight when it landed to the cheers of a crowd at Boeing Field in Seattle.
“The 777X flew beautifully, and today’s testing was very productive,” said Capt. Van Chaney, 777/777X chief pilot for Test & Evaluation. “Thank you to all the teams who made today possible. I can’t wait to go fly your airplane again.”
Chaney and Chief Pilot Craig Bomben flew the airplane from Paine Field in Everett, over Washington state. During the flight, they worked through a detailed test plan to exercise the airplane’s systems and structures while the test team in Seattle monitored the data in real time. The airplane, WH001, will now undergo checks before resuming testing in the coming days. It is the first of four dedicated 777-9 test airplanes.
Employees who witnessed either the takeoff from Paine Field in Everett, Washington, or the Boeing Field landing shared why they turned out on a chilly, overcast weekend to be a part of it.
“It’s cold, yes, but it’s very heartwarming to see our product that we have worked on so hard just take flight,” Diego Castano, 777/777X account manager for Customer Engineering said during the morning takeoff. “We can produce incredible machines, beautiful machines that actually bring the world together.”
Brent Snickers was determined to see it when he arrived with his camera at Boeing Field for the landing. The 12-year Fabrication employee in Auburn, Washington, works on a team that supplies paint packages to the 777X program. He had waited with thousands of others in the rain Friday to see the takeoff before it was postponed due to strong winds.
“This morning (Saturday) I watched the takeoff on TV, then I got in my truck and hurried up here to watch the landing. It’s a step forward, for the positive, for The Boeing Company,” Snickers said.
Saturday’s flight is the latest milestone in an effort to build the 777X that involves Boeing sites and partnerships in the U.S. and around the world.
“Our Boeing team has taken the most successful twin-aisle jet of all time and made it even more efficient, more capable and more comfortable for all,” said Stan Deal, president and CEO of Commercial Airplanes. “Today’s safe first flight of the 777X is a tribute to the years of hard work and dedication from our teammates, our suppliers and our community partners in Washington state and across the globe.”
The 777X is based on the 777, the most successful twin-aisle airplane ever, and integrates advanced technologies from the 787 Dreamliner. Through advanced aerodynamics, the latest generation carbon-fiber composite wing and the advanced GE Aviation GE9X engine, it is designed to be the largest and most fuel-efficient twin-engine jet in the world.
To build it, Boeing invested more than $1 billion to construct the Composite Wing Center in Everett to manufacture the largest commercial airplane wing the company has ever built for the 777X.
The 777X, which launched in 2013, includes 777-8 and 777-9 variants. To date, the 777X has outsold the competition by nearly 2 to 1 with orders and commitments for 340 airplanes.
The first 777X rolled out of the factory in March 2019. First delivery is slated for 2021.
Ed Gillette, 777X Customer Engineering senior manager, called seeing the first flight “a privilege,” and reflected upon the often personal significance for him and other employees.
Free coin spin. “I’ve been at Boeing over 20 years, my family has worked for Boeing for more than 40 years. And there are few things as an engineer that give me more pride than seeing a flying machine that makes the world a better place,” he said.
The 777X climbs smoothly into the air over Everett, Washington to begin its first flight.
Boeing PhotoThe 777X takes off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington.
Boeing PhotoBoeing 777x First Flight Time
The 777X approaches Boeing Field in Seattle for a landing after nearly four hours in the air over Washington during its first flight.
777x First Flight Live Stream
Boeing Photo