News First Flight of Boeing 787 - live webcast

[SiberianTiger]

Boeing announced the first flight of their 787 "Dreamliner" from Paine Field in Everett, WA to Boeing Field in Seattle, WA. The flight will take about 4 or 5 hours. It will be covered live via webcast:

http://787firstflight.newairplane.com/ffindex.html

The webcast will begin at 17:40 UTC December 15, 2009.

The plane is to take off at 18:00 UTC (10:00 a.m. PST)

 

[lennartsmit]

Cool to hear the atc too.

---------- Post added at 07:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:03 PM ----------

And we got lifto... I mean takeoff.

 

[Arrowstar]

I notice that the 787 (and other jetliners) has this silver nozzle-looking device on the very rear of the aircraft, right by the tail. Anyone know what that is?

 

[Urwumpe]

I notice that the 787 (and other jetliners) has this silver nozzle-looking device on the very rear of the aircraft, right by the tail. Anyone know what that is?

Usually the auxiliary power unit APU, produces electrical power, cool air and sometimes hydraulic circulation while the main engines are not running. Their main purpose is to provide mechanical or electrical power for starting the main engines.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auxiliary_power_unit

 

[Bj]

I notice that the 787 (and other jetliners) has this silver nozzle-looking device on the very rear of the aircraft, right by the tail. Anyone know what that is?

Do you mean like:
Boeing_787_Roll-out.jpg

That white cone at the end?

The very rear of the plane is where the exhaust from the APU exits.
I think the white part is just paint apart of the color scheme.

Edit: Urwumpe has a fast hand

 

[Pilot7893]

Aw, I missed it?
School: Making me miss all the cool things that happen in the world since 1999

 

[Urwumpe]

Edit: Urwumpe has a fast hand

The man that types quicker than his own shadow. :hello:

 

[Scarecrow]

Wow, where have I been all this time? The last I heard, the Dreamliner was just a dream, and was probably going to be cancelled. Good to see that Boeing hasn't lost it's touch after all.:thumbup:

 

[FordPrefect]

Aw, I missed it?
School: Making me miss all the cool things that happen in the world since 1999

The first flight is still in progress as I type this, you can also track the flight live here:

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/BOE1

:hello:

 

[Bj]

The first flight is still in progress as I type this, you can also track the flight live here:

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/BOE1

:hello:

Well who woulda thought, if it wasnot cloudy around here then I could have probably seen it. Since it was only at a max of 12,900 feet.

 

[Unstung]

Here's its takeoff:
[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fucq5BoEfEI"]YouTube- Boeing 787 makes maiden flight[/nomedia]

 

[flying coffin]

It looks like it has a LOT of dihedral angle on the wings!

 

[Arrowstar]

Usually the auxiliary power unit APU, produces electrical power, cool air and sometimes hydraulic circulation while the main engines are not running. Their main purpose is to provide mechanical or electrical power for starting the main engines.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auxiliary_power_unit

Thanks for the info. While I know what an APU is (what shuttle enthusiast doesn't :lol, I had no idea that's where it was located, though. Pretty interesting!

I noticed the angle on the wings, too. I thought swept wings were typically for aircraft that cruise at a significant fraction of the speed of sound or greater than it...

And just looked. With a cruising speed of Mach 0.89, I suppose it fits the bill.

 

[Notebook]

BBC item:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8415294.stm

Is that an anti-spin device trailing behind the fin?

N.

 

[Chub777]

BBC item:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8415294.stm

Is that an anti-spin device trailing behind the fin?

N.

Looks like a photo drone to me.

Also does anyone know why the engine exhaust isn't straight?

 

[tblaxland]

Also does anyone know why the engine exhaust isn't straight?

Technically, its not the engine exhaust but rather the bypass duct. Anyway, it reminds me of the rear diffusers you see on cars, so possibly some attempt at reducing turbulence at the interface between the bypass air and the ambient air?

 

[tl8]

Some boffin was talking to another boffin, and they were having a Cupcake as the discussed the problem of turbulence around the Bypass Duct exit.

The rest they say is history...

---------- Post added at 08:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:46 PM ----------

Anyway they were looking at turbulence profiles and probably ran some sims and found that small modification increased efficiency or reduced weight with no drop in efficiency.

A number of small improvements like this can really start to have an effect on the aircraft's performance.

 

[Unstung]

The aircraft does a lot to reduce drag. The wings are impressive, and look more efficient than the wing tips, but fragile.
I wonder where Continental is going to be flying their 787s.

 

[tblaxland]

Some boffin was talking to another boffin, and they were having a Cupcake as the discussed the problem of turbulence around the Bypass Duct exit.

:rofl:nice!

I believe the theory is that the effective size of the bypass duct exit is increased, reducing the velocity difference between the bypass air and ambient and reducing turbulence/increasing efficiency as a result. That is the main reason for turbofans IIRC.

The aircraft does a lot to reduce drag. The wings are impressive, and look more efficient than the wing tips, but fragile.
I wonder where Continental is going to be flying their 787s.

Raked wingtips seem to be more effective than winglets. I see on Wikipedia that the 787-3 variant will use winglets though, to reduce wingspan and therefore fit more gates.

 

[Hielor]

The chevrons on the exhaust are there for noise reduction.