Boeing’s biggest Dreamliner and Airbus’ s smallest member of the A320neo family both took to the skies on Friday in a rare instance of two new aircraft types undertaking first flights on the same day.
The Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner undertook its first flight at the US manufacturer’s facility in Charleston, South Carolina. The flight lasted four hours and 58 minutes and included tests on flight controls, systems and handling qualities.
The 787-10 is a stretch of the 787-9 that adds 18ft (5.5m) to the fuselage and can seat up to 330 passengers, about 14 per cent more than 787-9, and carry 15 per cent more freight.
It cannot fly as far as the 787-9 — Boeing puts its range at 6430 nautical miles (11, 910km) as opposed to the 787-9s 6430 nm (14,140km) — but the company says it can still cover 90 per cent of global commercial airline routes.
The 787-10 promises a 25 per cent fuel reduction per seat on the aircraft it replaces, up from 20 per cent on its sister Dreamliners, and Boeing claims it will beat the competition by 10 per cent.
It has won 149 orders from nine airlines across the world and will be introduced into service by launch customer Singapore Airlines.
“From takeoff to landing, the airplane handled beautifully and just as expected,” said chief 787 pilot Tim Berg, who flew the plane with colleague Mike Bryan. “The 787-10 is a fantastic machine that I know our customers and their passengers will love.”
Watch the Boeing Webcast.
The 787-10 will now undergo comprehensive flight testing before customer deliveries begin in the first half of 2018.
Boeing says that since entering service in 2011, the 787 family has flown more than 152 million people on over 560 unique routes around the world, saving an estimated 14 billion pounds of fuel.
The Airbus A319neo is the third member of the successful A320neo family and flew from Hamburg to Toulouse on Friday in a five-hour flight.
The aircraft, powered by CFM International LEAP-1A engines, allowed the crew to assess the aircraft’s general handling and main systems.
It will remain in Toulouse to complete its flight test program.
The smallest member of the family can also be powered by the Pratt & Witney PW1100G-JM geared turbofan engine and can fly up 7750km when equipped with sharklets.
It is designed to deliver fuel savings of up to 15 per cent and seat up to 160 passengers or about 124 in a two-class configuration.
The A319neo is particularly suited to difficult airports due to its short field performance and ability to operate in hot and high conditions.
