Boeing Flies Its Biggest Plane to Date

Posted Feb 8th 2010 7:00PM by Michael Fowlkes
Filed under: International Markets, Good news, Products and Services, Launches, Competitive Strategy, Boeing Co (BA)

It was a big day for aerospace giant The Boeing Company (BA), which celebrated the inaugural flight of the biggest plane the company has ever built.

The plane, the Boeing 747-8, was originally planned to get off the ground over a year ago, but the delay did not dampen the mood at today's take off. Hundreds of employees and spectators on hand to watch the massive 253 foot jumbo jet take flight for the first time.

The company is producing both cargo and passenger versions of the new jet, and has reported that it currently has orders for 76 freighter versions of the plane and 36 passenger jets.

With its increased size, the passenger version of the planes will be to handle 51 additional passengers and 26% more cargo.

Boeing does not expect to start delivering the new aircrafts to customers until the fourth quarter of this year.

Today's flight comes just one day shy of the 41st anniversary of the first flight ever taken by the company's original 747 aircraft.

Tags: air travel, airliners, AirTravel, BA, boeing, cargoplane, jets, planes, travel