The awarding of ATC caps a successful flight test programme that began in March 2017 and involved three flight test airplanes that accumulated about 900 test hours. Boeing’s flight test programme team took the airplanes through a series of tests to confirm the airplane’s handling, systems and overall performance met internal requirements and certification standards to ensure safety of flight.
“We are pleased to have met the rigorous standards set forth by the FAA and are eager to bring the airplane to market for our valued customers,” said vice president and general manager of the 787 programme, Brad Zaback. “After years of design and testing, our team has proven the quality, safety and reliability of the newest member of the Dreamliner family and we look forward to seeing the airplane in service later this year.” Other aviation regulatory agencies are expected to follow the FAA’s lead and certify the airplane before it enters service.
The 787 Dreamliner is a family of super-efficient airplanes with new passenger-pleasing features. As a stretch of the 787-9, the 787-10 retains over 95 per cent commonality while adding seats and cargo capacity, setting a new benchmark for fuel efficiency and operating economics at 25 per cent better fuel per seat and emissions than the airplanes it will replace. The airplane can fly 330 passengers, in a typical two-class configuration, up to 6,430 nautical miles (11,910 km).
To date, Boeing has over 170 orders for the 787-10 from nine customers worldwide. First delivery is expected to Singapore Airlines in the first half of 2018.
IndiGo airlines celebrated Veterans’ Day, Army Day and Republic Day (14, 15 and 26 January respectively) by facilitating a visit of military officers to CAE Simulation Training Pvt Ltd (CSTPL) in Greater Noida.
The group consisted of serving as well as veteran officers who had expressed their keenness to understand some aspects of flight operations in an airline. The visit brought together members of aviation industry and defence forces such as Vice Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal SB Deo and Aditya Ghosh, President and Whole-time Director, IndiGo.
The visit began with a walkthrough of the facility and was followed by SIM safety briefing and a presentation by IndiGo. Sharing his views, Aditya Ghosh said, “Republic Day represents the true spirit of an independent and democratic India. No one epitomises the ideals of selfless service, sacrifice and patriotism, more than the Indian Armed Forces. At IndiGo, we are deeply grateful to the brave men and women of the military who defend our freedom. We are indeed honoured today to host some of our most decorated members of all three services, the Air Force, the Indian Army and the Indian Navy at our state-of-the-art flight simulator training facility along with their better halves. I hope everyone has a fun day and experiences first hand, how much training goes into IndiGo managing its operations with precision. As we prepare once again to celebrate our republic, we at IndiGo see this only as a small token of our appreciation and thank all our brave officers of the armed forces in service of a great nation.”