ANA's 787 Dreamliner Completes First Commercial Flight

Boeing 787 Dreamliner completed its first commercial flight on Wednesday. All Nippon Airways (ANA) flight flew from Narita to Hong Kong and took four hours to reach the destination. The jet will return back to Japan on Thursday.

Boeing’s much awaited 787 Dreamliner landed in Hong Kong on Wednesday, creating aviation history. The aircraft took off from the Tokyo's Narita International Airport in the early afternoon and landed in Hong Kong after approximately four hours.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Flight NH7871 was greeted in Hong Kong with great enthusiasm, reflected by traditional dance and music performances. World’s first charter passenger flight of Boeing 787 Dreamliner has been delayed for more than 3 years and the development would surely bring a sigh of relief from both Boeing’s as well as ANA’s quarters. The aircraft will return to Japan on Thursday.

Around 250 passengers boarded the historic flight of the airline. The list of passengers included a number of journalists as well as several Boeing and ANA executives. All Nippon Airways held a lottery for its frequent flyers to offer a chance to the travellers to buy tickets on the 787 Dreamliner. Some seats were auctioned off for charity.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner is understood to be 20% more fuel-efficient than regular airliners and is also 30% cheaper to maintain. Budget travellers who prefer booking cheap flight tickets will perhaps have better chance with the Dreamliner as the fuel efficiency is more and maintenance costs are low. Apart from the brighter prospects of netting cheap flight tickets, Boeing 787 also promises a much comfortable journey to the travellers.

All Nippon Airways has announced its plans to launch domestic flights with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner from Nov. 1st. Long-haul flight from Tokyo to Frankfurt will follow the domestic operations.

All About Boeing 787 Dreamliner

Boeing 787 Dreamliner is built of lightweight materials that promise better fuel efficiency. Boeing 787 is the first commercial jet aircraft made mainly of plastic-composite materials.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner will be a ‘game changer’, if some of the industry experts are to be believed. Boeing hopes to reinvent travel experience for the passengers on medium and long haul flights. The aircraft features larger windows, improved lighting, and air pressure and humidity that are much closer to that on the ground.

Boeing 787’s Delivery Schedule

With a total order of 55 Dreamliner aircraft, All Nippon Airways is the biggest customer of the Boeing 787. So far, the airline has received two jets and it is scheduled to get another nine by the end of March. ANA hopes to bring its tally of Boeing 787 to 20 by the end of March 2013. As per reports, the Boeing 787 will generate fuel savings worth as much as 10 billion yen ($126 million) a year for the carrier.

Boeing has Dreamliner orders from carriers like Air China, British Airways and Delta Air Lines. Japan Airlines has more than 30 787s on order, while United Continental will be the first U.S. carrier to fly the 787.