CHICAGO – Boeing Co. has long promised that its 787 Dreamliner will fly faster and farther than any other medium-sized jet, use 20 percent less fuel and offer increased cabin comfort.
Now the first all-new American commercial jetliner in more than a decade also will be at least six months late.
Acknowledging that early problems assembling the first 787 have disrupted its schedule, the aerospace company said Wednesday that it is delaying initial deliveries of the ballyhooed aircraft by six months. Instead of May, the first deliveries are now targeted for late November or December 2008.
The first test flight, already pushed back once from the initial target of this fall, now is not anticipated until around the end of the first quarter of 2008.
The delay highlights inherent problems in building new airplanes and could slow the momentum Boeing built up after years of lagging behind European rival Airbus, which itself stumbled in introducing its superjumbo A380 two years behind schedule.
Chairman Jim McNerney expressed disappointment over the delays but said the problems relate to the company’s supply chain, not to any structural or design problems.
