Boeing Unveils the World's Largest Twin-Engine Cargo Plane – Photos
Boeing unveiled the first prototype of its new 777-8F freighter from a hangar at its Everett plant. Construction of this model began last summer, and it is set to become the new benchmark for range and fuel efficiency in its class.
Boeing announced the completion of this key assembly milestone on its website.
The new aircraft is impressive in size: the fuselage is nearly 71 meters long, and the wingspan of the composite wings, equipped with unique folding wingtips, reaches 71.8 meters. Thanks to GE9X engines and technologies borrowed from the 787 Dreamliner, the aircraft is capable of carrying up to 118 tons of cargo over a distance of more than 8,000 km. These specifications allow the twin-engine 777-8F to compete in terms of cargo capacity with the legendary four-engine Boeing 747-400F “jumbo jet.”
The next step for engineers will be preparing for the first flight and launching a large-scale flight test program. The introduction of the 777-8F is strategically important for the 777X program, which has previously faced delays. The new aircraft is expected to allow airlines to significantly optimize long-haul operations by reducing the number of technical stops and fuel consumption, which is particularly relevant in the context of global economic challenges.
Australian airline Qantas is preparing to launch a nonstop flight of record duration, which will last over 20 hours.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby announced in a memo the decision to cut more than 5% of flight routes due to the fuel crisis in Iran.
