Date of Dreamliner's first commercial flight announced
The world’s first commercial passenger flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner is scheduled for October 26 between Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Hong Kong.
The aircraft will return to Tokyo on October 27 to complete its inaugural voyage.
All Nippon Airways, the first airline that will put the much-delayed aircraft into operation, will operate the inaugural Narita-Hong Kong flight as a special charter.
Excursion flights will depart from, and land in, Narita on the following two days (October 28 and 29) as a teaser experience for airplane buffs.
The aircraft’s first normal international service will travel between Tokyo’s Haneda Airport and Beijing starting in December. The airline’s first regular long-haul route will link Haneda with Frankfurt, and will operate from January 2012 onward.
The Dreamliner’s first regular domestic service will fly from Haneda Airport to Okayama and Hiroshima starting November 1.
Tickets for the inaugural Narita-Hong Kong flight will be sold through package tours available exclusively to members of the ANA Mileage Club. A lottery will be held to select 100 economy class passengers for the flight.
Flights booked as part of package tours will be on sale from September 1 to 11.
For details, check out ANA’s specially dedicated 787 website.
ANA has ordered 55 Dreamliners and is the largest airline customer of the aircraft.
More on CNNGo: Gallery: First Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrives in Japan
The Dreamliner is lighter and 20 percent more fuel-efficient than other similar-sized airliners. Its rollout has been heavily delayed, with the initial May 2008 delivery target repeatedly pushed back due to technical problems.
