Boeing conducted the first successful flight of the all new 747-8 Intercontinental on March 20, 2011.
747-8 New Features
The 747-8 Intercontinental will seat 467 passengers, 51 more than the current version of the 747-400. The 747-8 Intercontinental applies interior features from the 787 Dreamliner that includes a new curved, upswept architecture giving passengers a greater feeling of space and comfort, while adding more room for personal belongings. The plane also boasts new wings, a new tail, state-of-the-art engines and a new cockpit.
Successful First Flight
The Boeing [NYSE: BA] 747-8 Intercontinental successfully began its flight test program on March 20, 2011, taking off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington, before several thousand employees, customers, suppliers and community leaders. The airplane landed four hours and 25 minutes later at Boeing Field in Seattle. The 747-8 Intercontinental’s first flight marks the beginning of a flight test program that will finish in the fourth quarter.
Pictured here, the 747-8 Intercontinental before the launch.
Boeing 747-8 versus Airbus A-380
The new 747-8 promises to burn less fuel while offering more passenger comforts. The 747-8 Intercontinental is more than 10 percent lighter per seat than the Airbus A380 and consumes 11 percent less fuel per passenger. That translates into a trip-cost reduction of 21 percent and a seat-mile cost reduction of more than 6 percent compared to the A380, and offers QC2 departures.
Bottomline
Big American Innovation is alive and strong with the launch of the all new Boeing 747-8, and it bodes well for the American business and economy. Pound for pound, this new plane will give the A-380 sizable head winds, until the 787 Dreamliner becomes a reality. Boeing will create a solid money machine on the heels of the hugely successful 747 platform that began in 1970, as the major airlines begin their upgrades.
Source:
Boeing.com
http://boeing.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=1675
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