787 – new delays but making progress

Rolls-Royce says that there is no link between the uncontained failure of a Trent 1000 during ground testing and the delay in delivering the first 787.

The engine manufacturer said in a statement to Australian Aviation that the failure of the engine during a test run in early August “caused no disruption to the Boeing flight test programme and is in no way associated with the announced delay to the program.”

Rather, “Boeing has told us that the previous planned and agreed dates for Trent 1000 engine deliveries will now not support their latest flight test program requirements… Rolls-Royce is working closely with Boeing to expedite engine deliveries in support of their latest timetable.”

The delay comes after the company previously noted that other issues with the aircraft including supplier workmanship issues related to the horizontal stabiliser and instrumentation delays, could push first delivery of the 787 a few weeks into 2011, although officially it had been on track for a late 2010 delivery until the new announcement.

Meanwhile, Boeing has announced that it will add a further two 787s to its flight test program for the type after announcing recently that delivery of the first aircraft will be delayed until the middle for the first quarter of 2011.

Unlike the six aircraft originally identified as being involved in the flight test program, the two additional aircraft are production 787s which will still be delivered to customers after the type achieves certification. Reports claim that the two aircraft will be involved in ground and ETOPS (Extended-range Twin engine Operations), which will not require heavy instrumentation or modification, and it is understood that they will be flown with full airline interiors.

A Boeing spokesperson said that the manufacturer had always intended to add two aircraft to the test fleet but that it had not been previously disclosed. There are currently five of six preproduction aircraft involved in flight test duties, with the sixth aircraft likely to fly later this month.

In the meantime, the 787 test fleet has been kept busy. Four of the five Boeing 787s currently being used on its flight test program were involved in a number of tests away from their base at Everett over the last week.

Boeing announced on September 3 that ZA001 was taking a break from operations from Edwards Air Force Base, with the aircraft positioning to Roswell, New Mexico, for tests including rejected takeoff tests. ZA002 deployed to Keflavik Airport in Iceland for cross wind stability and control autoflight testing, while ZA003 deployed to Yuma, Arizona, for hot weather testing. ZA004 has been conducting testing on external pressure distributions through the flight envelope out of Victorville, California, and will then head to Glasgow, Montana, after its program at Victorville wraps up.

While its four sisterships were away from Boeing Field, ZA005 remained there, conducting ice shape testing required for certification. Artificial ice shapes have been affixed to the leading edges of the wings and horizontal and vertical stabiliser of the aircraft to verify its performance in icing conditions. Natural ice testing has already occurred.

At presstime, the five 787 test aircraft have conducted more than 1808 hours of flying on 582 sorties. The sixth flight test aircraft is expected to join the test fleet over the coming months, while two early production aircraft will also be involved in some testing, ahead of certification and delivery during the first quarter of 2011.

Separately, The US FAA has granted provisional approval for Boeing Training and Flight Services’ 787 pilot training courses, which will allow pilots rated on the 777 to transition to 787 flying in as little as five days due to the commonality between the two aircraft.

“Gaining FAA approval for our courses is a significant milestone as we ramp up to the start of flight training,” said Mark Albert, director of Simulator Services and 787 Training Program, Boeing Training & Flight Services. “It validates our approach to provide world class training solutions at great value for the 787 Dreamliner.”

Boeing is working with the FAA to obtain provisional approval of the training devices at which point formal pilot training will commence. The provisional designation will be removed once the aircraft is fully certified, which is currently scheduled for before the end of the year.