First flights

Two important new aircraft made their maiden flights last week, the Bombardier CSeries and Boeing 787-9.  Whilst the Bombardier was a legitimate inaugural excursion it could be argued that the new Boeing was just a stretch of an existing aircraft, which it is, but Seattle would argue that it is a game changer and, unlike its smaller sibling, is on time and on budget.

The long awaited inaugural foray of the Bombardier CSeries took place last Monday (16 September) from the Canadian manufacturer's Mirabel, Montreal facility, a 2hrs 20mins flight mission.

“In many ways we didn’t learn anything new, although we validated a few things we already did know”, said Chuck Ellis, the lead test pilot for the flight, during a press conference afterwards. (see below for a CSeries summary)

Wearing the latest Boeing livery, the newest member of the 787 family completed a 5hrs 16mins flight the next day taking off from Paine Field, Seattle. 

The 787-9 offers a fuselage stretch by 20ft (6m) over the 787-8, carrying 40 more passengers an additional 300 nautical miles (555kl).  Air New Zealand will become the first operator in the middle of 2014.  To date 83 Boeing 787s have been delivered. www.boeing.com/commercial  www.bombardier.com

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