Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Three years overdue, the first All Nippon Airways 787 Dreamliner to carry commercial passengers promises to revolutionize air travel. The plane is the first commercial airliner to be made mostly of carbon composites or super durable plastic. Those materials mean a lighter plane that Boeing says could use 20% less fuel than conventional airliners, making way for a more environmentally-friendly and cost effective aircraft option for airlines.
All Nippon Airways (ANA) started the aircraft’s service ready operational validation (SROV) in July 2011 between Tokyo Haneda airport and the airports for Osaka, Okayama and Hiroshima. Shinichiro Ito, the carrier’s President and CEO, confirmed that the aircraft’s first commercial flight will either on the Haneda-Okayama or Haneda-Hiroshima routes.
The Dreamliner sports many impressive technological innovations - take a look here for a first look at the inside of this new aircraft.