Look Ma... No Legs!

Progress on Boeing's oft-delayed 787 Dreamliner continues to move slowly towards first flight, scheduled for November. Last weekend, Boeing began tests of the landing gear on the first aircraft, swinging both the nosegear and main landing gear as part of its testing efforts.

The Seattle Times reports the nose and main gear assemblies were first tested separately, and then jointly -- just as they operate on in-service aircraft. Testing was scheduled to continue throughout the week.

Boeing debuted the first 787 in a flashy public ceremony in July 2007. At that time, however, the plane was little more than a cobbled-together shell, with few major systems installed. Customers and pundits alike questioned whether Boeing would be able to meet its ambitious schedule, which called for certification of the first 787 delivery by May 2008.

Boeing boldly downplayed those fears... but if anything, those predictions of gloom were optimistic. Supplier issues, a shortage of the specialized fasteners needed to assemble the 787's innovative composite "barrel" sections, and problems integrating the plane's many complex subsystems made Boeing's earlier Dreamliner assertions a true nightmare.

In April, Boeing announced its third delay to the Dreamliner program... pushing off first flight to the end of 2008 and "approximately" 25 deliveries the year after, starting in the third quarter of 2009. For the moment, the company is sticking to that schedule.

Though it may seem a rather mundane accomplishment, the gear trials mark one of the most significant tests of systems integration on the first airframe, since the company completed power-on of the aircraft in June.

Swinging the landing gear taxes the 787's electrical and hydraulic systems, as well as its structure.

FMI: www.boeing.com, Watch Boeing's Video Of The Gear Tests