New Boeing 787 Model Performs Hair-Raising Takeoff Before Paris Show
CHICAGO, June 12 (UPI) — Boeing’s 787-9 model, set to be showcased at the Paris Air Show next week, gave the world a tantalizing glimpse with a teaser video posted to YouTube Thursday — which shows the aircraft performing a hair-raising takeoff.
The video depicts Boeing pilots demonstrating some of the plane’s capabilities. The 787-9 is 20 feet longer than the 787-8 and is 20 percent more fuel efficient than the 767, Boeing said.
The newer model can carry 280 passengers and fly for nearly 10,000 miles without refueling, Boeing said. It also has a higher fuel capacity than the 787-8. Airlines began taking delivery of the 787-9 variant last July.
At the beginning of the teaser video, the pilots perform what seems to be a near vertical take off.
“Watch as Boeing’s expert crew rehearses the flying display that will be performed at the 2015 Paris Air Show,” the aerospace company posted with the video.
The Paris Air Show, which will begin Monday, is often a showcase for new aircraft and their gravity-defying capabilities.
In 1988, an Air France crew introducing the new Airbus A320-111 was supposed to perform a low flyby — almost landing — and then soar back into the sky. The plane, which carried 130 passengers, instead crashed into a forest of trees beyond the runway. Three passengers were killed.
Boeing’s 787 entered commercial service in late 2011. They were later grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration due to a fire safety hazard with the jet’s lithium-ion batteries.
Boeing said the 787-9 is designed to compete with the Airbus A330, and will ultimately replace the 767-400ER.
The 787-10, which was introduced at the 2013 Paris Air Show, is about 20 feet longer than the 787-9 but has a shorter fuel range to accommodate 50 additional passengers and a larger freight capacity.
