Boeing to fly 777X this Friday

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January 21, 2020
Credit @MattCawby

Boeing has delayed the first flight of its 777X to Friday at 10 am because of bad weather.

The first flight which was scheduled for Thursday is expected to last 5 hours.

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The company has been conducting taxi tests over the past few days in preparation for the first flight which is almost 9-months overdue because of issues with its GE9X engines.

Boeing’s 777X, WH001, recently came out of the paint hangar and has been prepared for the first flight, over the past three weeks.

Upgraded GE9X engines were installed in December.

The upgrade incorporates improvements to fix durability problems that were unearthed late in the engine test program last summer.

The issue, centred on the stator vanes in the compressor and forced Boeing to delay the start of flight tests of the 777-9 from July 2019 to early 2020.

Deliveries of the Boeing 777X are delayed till early 2021.

Boeieng 777X

The aircraft combines the best features of the current 777 with a longer and wider internal fuselage, new engine and the composite wing design from the Boeing 787.

It also features 20 per cent larger windows and has lower pressurization altitude to reduce jet lag.

The 777-9X seats more than 400 passengers, depending on an airline’s configuration choices.

With a range of more than 8,200 nautical miles (15,185 km), the aircraft will have the lowest operating cost per seat of any commercial aircraft says, Boeing.

The second member of the family, the 777-8X, will be the most flexible jet in the world claims Boeing. The aircraft will seat 350 passengers and offer a range capability of more than 9,300 nautical miles (17,220 km).