Boeing handed over the first 787-9 Dreamliner to Air New Zealand on July 8, 2014.
The 787-9 Dreamliner debut —
Boeing handed over the first 787-9 Dreamliner to Air New Zealand on July 8, 2014.
courtesy boeing
The debut aircraft was painted in a special edition livery, featuring the New Zealand fern on the back end of the fuselage. Flights will initially take place between Auckland and Perth starting October 2014, and extend to Tokyo and Shanghai a month later.
All-black (nearly) edition —
The debut aircraft was painted in a special edition livery, featuring the New Zealand fern on the back end of the fuselage. Flights will initially take place between Auckland and Perth starting October 2014, and extend to Tokyo and Shanghai a month later.
courtesy air new zealand
Boeing's 787-9 Dreamliner took off on its maiden voyage on September 17, 2013. The 787-9 is 20 feet longer and holds 40 more passengers than the 787-8, which carries between 210 and 250 passengers.
More passegers can fly further —
Boeing's 787-9 Dreamliner took off on its maiden voyage on September 17, 2013. The 787-9 is 20 feet longer and holds 40 more passengers than the 787-8, which carries between 210 and 250 passengers.
Elaine Thompson/AP
Besides carrying more passengers, the new version of the Dreamliner also can carry more cargo and fly further.
Cargo improvements too —
Besides carrying more passengers, the new version of the Dreamliner also can carry more cargo and fly further.
courtesy Boeing
Boeing began final assembly of the first 787-9 Dreamliner in May 2013 in Everett, Washington, when employees began joining large sections of the aircraft together.
Assembling the first 787-9 —
Boeing began final assembly of the first 787-9 Dreamliner in May 2013 in Everett, Washington, when employees began joining large sections of the aircraft together.
Courtesy Boeing
The Dreamliner 787-8 got off to a rough start. In January 2013, this All Nippon Airways 787 made an emergency landing because of battery troubles. It was one of several problems encountered by the aircraft, and subsequently the FAA ordered the entire 787 fleet to be grounded, while fixes to the battery system were made. The fleet started flying again in April 2013.
A troubled first year in the air —
The Dreamliner 787-8 got off to a rough start. In January 2013, this All Nippon Airways 787 made an emergency landing because of battery troubles. It was one of several problems encountered by the aircraft, and subsequently the FAA ordered the entire 787 fleet to be grounded, while fixes to the battery system were made. The fleet started flying again in April 2013.
STR/AFP/Getty Images/File
A LOT Polish Airlines 787, with a redesigned lithium-ion battery system, performs a test flight at Paine Field in Everett, Washington. The Dreamliner's distinctive wings sweep back at 32 degrees.
The battery fix is tested —
A LOT Polish Airlines 787, with a redesigned lithium-ion battery system, performs a test flight at Paine Field in Everett, Washington. The Dreamliner's distinctive wings sweep back at 32 degrees.
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images/File
The use of composite materials on the Dreamliner makes larger window cutouts possible. Composites have replaced aluminum as the predominant material in the 787. The 777 is made up of 50% aluminum and 12% composites, compared with the Dreamliner's nearly 50% makeup of composites and just 20% aluminum.
Passenger-friendly innovations —
The use of composite materials on the Dreamliner makes larger window cutouts possible. Composites have replaced aluminum as the predominant material in the 787. The 777 is made up of 50% aluminum and 12% composites, compared with the Dreamliner's nearly 50% makeup of composites and just 20% aluminum.
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images/File
Pilots train on one of two 787 full-flight simulators, like the one shown here, at the company's training center in Miami. Capt. Gary Lee Beard is shown demonstrating one of the simulators.
Learning to fly the 787 —
Pilots train on one of two 787 full-flight simulators, like the one shown here, at the company's training center in Miami. Capt. Gary Lee Beard is shown demonstrating one of the simulators.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Air India's 787-8 Dreamliner got a water cannon salute in Australia as the country's first Dreamliner passenger flight landed in Sydney.
Dreamliner flight is cause for celebration —
Air India's 787-8 Dreamliner got a water cannon salute in Australia as the country's first Dreamliner passenger flight landed in Sydney.
The latest Dreamliner's debut

Story highlights

NEW: Boeing's Dreamliner 787-9 lands after after 5-plus-hour test flight

The Dreamliner 787-9 holds 40 more passengers than the earlier 787

Air New Zealand will receive the first 787-9 in mid-2014

CNN  — 

The latest incarnation of Boeing’s Dreamliner finished its maiden flight Tuesday afternoon, completing a test run of more than five hours.

A larger version of the 787-8, the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner is 206 feet long – 20 feet longer than its predecessor – and holds 40 more passengers. (The 787-8 can hold 210-250 passengers.)

Its range is also greater, at 8,000-8,500 nautical miles, versus the 787-8’s range of 7,650-8,200 nautical miles. Like the 787-8, the new plane uses 20% less fuel and has 20% fewer emissions than other planes its size.

Watch it online

An Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner flies over Le Bourget airport, near Paris, on June 18, 2013 during the 50th International Paris Air show. AFP PHOTO / ERIC FEFERBERGERIC FEFERBERG/AFP/Getty Images. S023258018
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Boeing provided live coverage via webcast prior to the aircraft’s 11:02 a.m. PT (1 p.m. ET) takeoff from Paine Field Airport in Everett, Washington. After a five-hour, 16-minute flight, it landed at Seattle’s Boeing Field at 4:18 p.m. PT (7:18 p.m. ET).

The two pilots, Capt. Mike Bryan and Capt. Randy Neville, were expected to speak afterward at a news conference, also to be carried on the webcast.

“This is a beautiful machine,” said Ray Conner, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, speaking on the webcast shortly after takeoff. “It’s going to be the backbone of the 787 fleet.”

Pre-debut

The latest Dreamliner rolled out of the factory in Everett, Washington, in late August, and it is scheduled to be delivered to its first customer, Air New Zealand, in mid-2014.

World’s largest airliner: Is bigger better?

This year, Boeing has had more than 82 orders to date for the 787, with the largest order of 42 planes coming from American Airlines. Singapore Airlines has the second largest order for 787s with 30 planes ordered.

Approximately 40% of all 787 orders to date (not just this year) are for the 787-9.

The announcement is one of the few celebratory moments for the company in recent months.

The four-month global grounding of the entire Dreamliner fleet, after an ANA flight was diverted following a battery fire in January, was the first such global grounding in 30 years.

To get the plane back in the sky, a team made up of experts from Boeing and from outside the company redesigned the system so battery cells would be separated and insulated. The new system also was designed to ventilate outside the plane any smoke that would come from overheating batteries.

The grounding was lifted at the end of April.

Since the dramatic ANA incident, Dreamliner’s list of problems has gone on to include a United Airlines emergency landing in Houston caused by brake problems and a fire started by an emergency locator beacon on an Ethiopian Airlines 787 at Heathrow Airport. United flights were diverted as a precaution last summer due to a faulty fuel pump indicator and an oil level indicator.

As well as being lighter and more fuel efficient than similar aircraft, the Dreamliner’s in-cabin experience is also different.

It has bigger windows that can be dimmed (out go the pull-down shutters), LED mood lighting and is pressurized at 6,000 feet rather than 8,000 feet, making air sickness less likely.

Another new airplane

The 787-9 won’t be the final iteration of the 787 aircraft. In June, Boeing announced the launch of the 787-10 Dreamliner. Final assembly and flight tests are scheduled to begin in 2017, with first delivery tentatively scheduled in 2018. The company said the 787-10 will fly up to 7,000 nautical miles and have seating for 300-330 passengers.

CNN’s Thom Patterson contributed to this story.