MOSES LAKE, Wash. - Boeing engineers say the 747-8 Freighter - the biggest plane the company has ever built - has reached its initial airworthiness status. That means test engineers can now be onboard the aircraft during future test flights. It also means two other 747-8 freighters can begin flight testing.
"The airplane is performing as suspected in the initial stages of flight tests," said Mo Yahyavi, vice-president and general manager of the 747 program, in a press release.
At 250 feet long -- more than twice the length of the Wright Brothers' first flight -- the plane is about 18 feet longer than the existing 747-400 jumbo jet.
The freighter made its first flight on February 8th, a year later than originally planned. Since that flight, however, the aircraft has made 13 test flights.
According to the press release, "pilots have taken the airplane to an altitude of 30,000 feet and a speed of mach .65." The aircraft has also been put through stall tests and other "dynamic maneuvers."
Boeing launched the freighter program on Nov. 14, 2005, with firm orders for 10 planes from Cargolux of Luxembourg and eight from Nippon Cargo Airlines of Japan. The jet has a list price of more than $301 million, though airlines commonly negotiate discounts.
After completing the test program, the first freighter will be refitted and delivered to Cargolux.
Boeing also is developing a passenger version of the plane. It lists 76 orders for the freighter and 32 for the 747-8 passenger jet, with the vast majority from international customers.
The first delivery was to have been in late 2009 and the first passenger version in late 2010, but Boeing pushed back the dates due to design changes, limited engineering resources and an eight-week strike that shut down factories.
The company says the jets will be much quieter, more fuel efficient and have lower emissions than current 747-400 models.
Although build in Everett, the 747-8 test flights are taking place at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake.
In its press release, Boeing says in the weeks ahead, pilots will take the freighter to an altitude of more than 43,000 feet and at a speed of mach .97, nearly the speed of sound.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
