Beyond the Dreamtime

There are only a handful of commercial airliners that can truly lay claim to changing the face of aviation. As with any list, there will always be a degree of debate, but few can argue the impact of types like the Douglas DC-3, Lockheed Constellation, Boeing 707 and the breakthrough 747. However, since the Boeing 747 ‘Jumbo Jet’ was launched, the Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde has turned heads, but little else has changed about the game. New types have built upon the foundations of existing types, eking out a little more performance here, or a few more seats there.

However, as the twenty-first century dawned, new priorities shaped an industry that for decades had converted jet fuel into speed and noise. Fuel costs continued to grow as a painful priority on airline balance sheets, while the obligation to be a responsible community and environmental citizen had never been stronger. To this backdrop, Boeing set about embracing the change and developed an aircraft to fly in the skies of this brave new world. Reductions of twenty per cent in both fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from and sixty per cent less noise from were just what were needed and this is what the 787 has delivered.

This has been achieved through the use of new technology, materials and manufacturing philosophy. And as with any revolutionary change, there have been issues which in the aircraft manufacturing business manifest translate into delays. However, now the Boeing 787 is in commercial service and delivering on its promises and it seems to have been well worth the wait. As the massive hangar door crept up at the QANTAS Jet Base, it was time for Australia to take its first look at the future of airliner design.

Delivering on Promises.

I was fortunate to visit the Boeing factory at Seattle recently and see the line of 787s coming together. Even at this early stage of the aeroplane’s life, it was immediately apparent that it was different. There was an absence of noise and there were very few rivet guns or drills plying there trade here, as compared to the one million holes found on a 747, the 787 requires less than 10,000 to be assembled. This stems from the dominant use of composites in the 787 which sees it comprising of 50 per cent composites compared to 12 per cent in the 777.

Furthermore, the main fuselage arrives at the back door of the Everett facility in one clean piece, awaiting attachment of the wings, tail and nose sections. Much of the wiring and plumbing is already in place and an air of simplicity seems to surround the complex process of aircraft assembly. Void of any paint scheme, with the exception of the rudder, the bare white aircraft further emphasise the smooth, clean nature of the airframe. Yet for all the wonder in seeing the 787 come together, nothing quite matches the finished aircraft, resplendent in its Boeing scheme, up close and personal at the QANTAS Jet Base.

This aircraft, appropriately registered N787BA, was the first Dreamliner to be built and shouldered a good deal of the flight test program workload. This workhorse has been taken to every corner of the performance envelope and yet still delivers the impact of a true thoroughbred. At first glance it might appear to be a larger 767, but rather quickly a number of features begin to highlight its differences.

The 787 wing has a beautiful form. Elegantly swept and tapering to aesthetically pleasing, subtly upturned raked wingtips, the wing boasts 40 feet more span than a 767-300 and a great deal more efficiency. The raked wingtip even offers an improvement over their blended winglet contemporaries found on the 737NG. Like the blended winglet, the raked wingtip increases the apparent aspect ratio of the wing to reduce the drag-producing vortices, but does it even more effectively. In flight and loaded at ‘one-G’ the dihedral of the wings arc up to 12 feet at the tip and give the wing the appearance of a soaring bird. Once again, it is the use of new materials that have permitted this blend of flexibility and strength.

Furthermore, the aircraft’s clean lines extend beyond its aerodynamic form. The main landing gear seems almost bare, void of the maze of hydraulic hoses that normally inhabit the undercarriage. For the 787 possesses electrical control and sequencing of the landing gear and doors, while the brake system features control-by-wire brakes, autobrake and anti-skid functions. There are also electric brake actuators.

The engine nacelles have a laminar flow design to minimise drag, while at the rear of the engine the saw-toothed ‘chevrons’ reduce the noise profile. And while the Dreamliner on display at Sydney possessed Rolls Royce Trent engines within its cowls, QANTAS have opted for the highly fuel efficient GEnx engines by GE to power their order for both 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft. Significantly, there is no bleed air system architecture branching from theses high-bypass engines. Leading edge wing anti-ice, air-conditioning, cabin pressurisation and engine starting are all electrically powered. This allows the 787 to produce thrust more efficiently with all of the high-speed air produced by the engines being used to generate thrust. Furthermore, the ducting, check-valves and pre-coolers that make up the system add significantly to the weight. As a result, the 787 possesses 4 x 250 kVa generating 1000 kVa, or more than four times the electrical power found on the 777.

Everywhere that you look on this airframe, there seems to be a new way of doing business; a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly way. In a nutshell, cruising at Mach 0.85 and compared to similar aircraft, the 787 offers a 20 per cent reduction in fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Maintenance costs are 30 per cent less and the 787 is 60 per cent quieter. At the all-important bottom line, there is a 10 per cent reduction in operating cost per seat. At the current time, the ability to operate non-stop for around 15,000 km with 250-350 passengers is solely the domain of the larger four-engined Boeing 747 or Airbus A380. The efficiencies and economics of this aircraft are currently unmatched and are set to become the benchmark against which other designs are compared. Still, the beauty is more than skin deep.

On the Inside.

With the Dreamliner parked proudly behind him, the Boeing 787 Chief 787 Project Engineer, Mike Sinnett, was a happy man. He spoke of his joy that the aeroplane was now delivering on all of the wonderful performance promises that had been made over the years of development. Importantly, he recognised that for all the science, if the 787 was not a pleasurable experience for the passengers, then it would have missed its mark. In light of this, the 787 also brought a new approach and new technologies to the cabin.

For starters, the cabin is quieter, the seats and aisles are wider and the windows are far larger than the 777, offering a spectacular outlook. By virtue of the composite airframe, the 787 can possess a higher cabin pressure differential which equates to a lower cabin altitude. While most airliner cabins sit at around 8,000 feet, the 787 is set at a more comfortable and oxygen-rich 6,000 feet. In conjunction with an improved filtration system, particles, odours, bacteria and volatile organic compounds are weeded out for a higher quality of cabin air. Together with a higher level of humidity, these factors are set to combat the old air-travel complaints of dryness, itchy eyes, headaches and even jet lag. But wait, there’s more. A vertical gust suppression system and an in-built ‘control law’ design to oppose in-flight disturbances, offers a smoother ride for all on board.

Those on the flight deck are not left out either where the 787 is concerned. Like the rest of the aeroplane, the flight deck is of a very clean and efficient nature. Dominated by four large full-colour screens, the flight panel is topped with a traditional MCP, or Mode Control Panel. Rockwell Collins, provides the flight deck and most of the aircraft’s avionics including dual Head Up Displays; a first for a commercial airliner. Dual EFBs by Astronautics are hard wired on the side console near each pilot’s knee Honeywell have provided the Flight Management System (FMS). Boeing has remained loyal to the traditional control yoke over the option of the side-stick and Boeing stalwarts across the globe can be heard applauding.

Inside and out, the designers have built an aeroplane that looks familiar and conventional but boasts the next generation of technology and innovation in just about every aspect. The Starship Enterprise has slipped into a Boeing wide-body with stealth.

A Pilot’s Perspective.

Seemingly, every pilot wants to get their hands on a 787 Dreamliner. One man who has from day one is Boeing Test Pilot, Regis Hancock. His name now sits beneath the flight deck windows on the Dreamliner and he knows this aircraft intimately, but he is not new to the test pilot game. A former United States Air Force test pilot, Regis has flown a range of types including the F-15 Eagle and today happily still flies the T-38 Talon, used by Boeing as a ‘chase plane’ as it gives him a chance to fly upside down. This guy is a pilot’s pilot.

As a workstation, the flight deck is very quiet. Regis states that even in the high speed tests at Vmo, the air noise is still at a very acceptable level. This is good news for crews as along with turbulence, noise can provide a significant source of fatigue. In discussing the flight deck, he also emphasises that with all the technology, it is still a familiar environment for pilots converting to the 787 from the 777. So much so that the differences course runs for five days of which one entire day is dedicated to the HUD. The HUD possess slightly different flare guidance and layout to the 737NG, but provides terrific guidance in low visibility take-offs. To demonstrate the point to the FAA, take-offs were conducted with the pilot flying’s windows completely blanked out!

A fly-by-wire (FBW) feature that assists the conversion from 777 to 787 is the Landing Attitude Modifier, or LAM. As the 787 wing is highly efficient, it requires a lesser angle of attack on approach to generate the same amount of lift than the older 777 wing and this translates into a different view out the flight deck window. Utilising the LAM feature, the aerodynamic qualities of the 787 are changed on approach to present a similar landing picture to the 777. Furthermore, this function maintains the same landing picture for the 787 throughout its full range of weights, cancelling any need for the crew to consider whether they are heavy or light; regardless, the picture remains the same.

There is also a tremendous degree of common fly-by-wire functionality between the 777 and the 787. However, there are features that are new to the 787. P-Beta control law, Vertical Gust Suppression in turbulence, enhanced stall protection which limits high angles of attack enhanced ‘Thrust Asymmetry Compensation’ which adds inertial yaw detection on the ground and generates rudder & steering for yaw disturbances. Together they equate to a safer, smoother ride, but of all the features that impress Regis, the P-Beta law is the stand-out. The P-Beta control law is a flight control function in which the wheel commands roll rate (P) and the pedals command sideslip angle (Beta). It opposes disturbances and coordinates lateral and directional control, utilising automatic aileron & rudder trim. Essentially, if the system doesn’t sense a pilot input, it opposes the disturbance smoothly and immediately, making for a smoother ride. Similarly, if established in a 30 degree bank turn, hands-off, the aircraft will maintain the attitude as it senses no further pilot input. It will maintain the attitude even when one thrust lever is retarded and asymmetric thrust occurs.

The 787 has been designed in a manner to introduce new technology, but to bring the pilots along with it with a degree of ease. Converting from the 777, there is a lot of familiar knowledge base upon which to build and this equates to lower training costs for the airlines. In an effort to enhance passenger comfort and improve upon operating efficiencies, the flight crew have also been well considered in the development of the Dreamliner.

Dreamtime.

QANTAS has a total order for 50 Boeing 787s, comprising of 15 787-8s and 35 of the longer 787-9s. Jetstar will receive the Group’s first B787-8s in 2013 while the 787-9s are planned to also go to QANTAS mainline some time after that. The seating configuration will vary with Jetstar 787-8s seating approximately 300 passengers, while their 787-9s will accommodate around 350 passengers. In the QANTAS livery, the longer 787 will be configured to seat 275 passengers.

Regardless of the configuration or paint scheme, the Boeing 787 is the new face of commercial airline travel. Its efficiencies must be met by their rivals, or they must face the consequences. In a carbon-conscious century, the 787 will provide the base-line and a failure to match will be similar to throwing dollar bills out of the tail-pipe. Already its innovations are seen surfacing on the latest manifestation of the Boeing 747, the -800, and it has given a legendary aircraft an entirely new lease of life.

‘Regardless of the configuration or paint scheme, the 787 is the new face of commercial airline travel.’

The 787 Dreamliner is game-changer and a virtual revolution in an industry that has traditionally been more reliant on evolution. It has met the needs of passengers, pilots and CEOs and encased them in a sleek, composite airframe. The new face of airline travel is upon us and projected us well beyond the dreamtime.

By Owen Zupp