Get Ready to Board the New Dreamliner
Friday, May 25, 2007SUZANNE PRATT: When the 787 Dreamliner takes flight in a few months, Boeing says it will be the quietest and most fuel efficient jet in the air. New technologies make the Dreamliner the most innovative airplane Boeing has ever built. And as Diane Eastabrook reports, the 787 could serve as a model for future generations of Boeing aircraft.
DIANE EASTABROOK, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: In Everett, Washington, Boeing workers build the body of the 787 Dreamliner, while 30 miles south, in Seattle, engineers prepare the guts of the airplane for installation. Boeing calls the 787 an engineering marvel. It is the company's most technologically advanced jet ever. Mike Sinnett, director of 787 systems, says integrating all of that technology requires extensive testing.
MIKE SINNETT, DIRECTOR, 787 SYSTEMS BOEING: Before we fly the airplane, we prove that all the functionality works together and we do that in a number of ways, and most of those ways are at the integration facility at Boeing.
EASTABROOK: Boeing says the 787 is the most electronic jet it has ever built. In the integrated test vehicle, engineers check the Dreamliner's flight system. It will operate on a combination of electric and hydraulic controls; traditional jets rely primarily on hydraulics. Boeing says by using more electric components, it can reduce the weight of the 787 and increase its reliability. The flight deck on the Dreamliner is also designed to be more pilot-friendly. Michael Konicke, chief flight deck engineer for the 787, says Boeing reduced the number of display monitors, but made them bigger and more useful.
MICHAEL KONICKE, CHIEF ENGINEER, 787 FLIGHT DECK: We've got five different multi-function displays, so you will be able to make the airplane accommodate you from an information standpoint as opposed to the other way around.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some handsets will have keyboards on the back for future offerings, such as maybe short messaging. ' EASTABROOK: The 787 will also be more passenger friendly. Separate television monitors for movies and other programs will be on the backs of all seats. Sean Sullivan, senior manager of 787 cabin systems, also points out how larger cabin windows will dim electronically.
SEAN SULLIVAN, SR. MGR. 787 POWER SYSTEMS, BOEING: On an existing window, it's a shade -- it's either all open or all closed. This will allow a grade of different lighting coming through from the outside.
EASTABROOK: The overall ride on the 787 should be more pleasant, as well. The multipurpose engineering simulator tests vertical gust sensors. The sensors will help the plane adjust for turbulence, giving passengers a much smoother ride. Scott Strode, vice president of development and production for the 787, says all of these technologies will be useful to Boeing down the road.
SCOTT STRODE, V.P. 787 DEVELOPMENT & PRODUCTION, BOEING: The new systems are all very, very suitable for either smaller or larger airplanes in the future and we have a strategy within Boeing where we will adopt those technologies into the next airplane when it's ready to go.
EASTABROOK: Boeing won't know if the 787 Dreamliner will eclipse its other jets in performance and popularity until it goes into service next year. But the company says initial research it has done indicates it will. Diane Eastabrook, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, Seattle, Washington.
