Did you ever wonder where the new car you just ordered was being built and even more, when the wonderful process of parts coming together to grow into an automobile, your automobile, started. Not to the hour but at least to the day.
I guess if you order a Rolls-Royce or some other exclusive car, they might be able and willing to tell you.
Your other option is to buy a spanking new 787 Dreamliner. Especially if you are the first to take delivery of the new jet in North America, you will know exactly when your new baby enters the gestation period.
On 17 August, United Continental Holdings announced that the first of its Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft has entered the assembly phase at Boeing’s facility in Everett, Wash. In early 2012, United will be the first North American carrier to take delivery of the aircraft, marking the first of 50 Dreamliners for the airline.
United Continental Holdings, Inc. is the holding company for both United Airlines and Continental Airlines. Together with United Express, Continental Express and Continental Connection, these airlines operate an average of 5,765 flights a day to 377 airports on six continents from their hubs in Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Guam, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark Liberty, San Francisco, Tokyo and Washington, D.C. United and Continental are members of Star Alliance, which offers more than 21,200 daily flights to 1,185 airports in 185 countries.
During assembly, Boeing will join the forward, center and aft fuselage sections, the wings, the horizontal stabilizer and the vertical fin.
The first United 787 will be configured with 36 flat-bed seats in BusinessFirst, 63 extra-legroom seats in Economy Plus and 120 seats in Economy. The aircraft’s revolutionary cabin environment and aerodynamic design allow it to fly farther, faster and more efficiently. Customers will experience improved lighting, bigger windows, larger overhead bins, increased cabin humidity, reduced cabin altitude and enhanced ventilation systems, among other passenger-friendly features.
“We are proud to be the first North American airline to receive the 787, which will be a game changer for the new United and the industry,” said United Airlines President and CEO Jeff Smisek. “The 787 will be a very comfortable, customer pleasing aircraft, and with its range, fuel efficiency and superb operating economics, the 787 will allow us to enter new long-haul markets and also replace older, less-efficient widebody aircraft.”
United Continental Holdings subsidiaries Continental and United each ordered 25 of the state-of-the-art aircraft. The company will announce the 787 flight schedule later this year.