Boeing 787 Dreamliner 787-8

Built from plastic, flexed like a bird

10 m · person 1.75 m · behind it, the A380 at the same scale

The story

Half of the 787 by weight is , not aluminium. The wings flex upward by several metres in flight, and the lighter structure and newer engines burn about 20 percent less fuel than the aircraft it replaced. Because composite does not corrode, the cabin can also be kept more humid.

Instead of thousands of aluminium panels riveted together, the fuselage is made of one-piece barrels of carbon fibre, baked in huge ovens by suppliers in Japan, Italy and the United States and flown to final assembly in a modified 747, the Dreamlifter. The cabin is pressurised to the air of 1,800 m rather than the usual 2,400 m, and the larger windows dim electronically instead of having blinds.

All Nippon Airways flew the first passengers, from Tokyo to Hong Kong, three years later than planned. In January 2013 fires in its lithium-ion batteries grounded every 787 for more than three months. The longer 787-9 and 787-10 followed, and Boeing has delivered more than a thousand.

How it works

How far a carbon wing can bend. Load the 787's wing past its limit and the actuators haul the tip up the post, about 7.6 m at 150%, as in the 2010 ultimate-load test.

Drawn for the Airbus A380

A Rolls-Royce Trent 970, the A380's engine, on a ground-run thrust frame with part of its casing cut away. Drag the lever and the three spools wind up at their own speeds; most of the air the fan moves leaves as a cold bypass jet around the core. Press Space for a take-off run.

Drawn for the Boeing 707

Why airliners lean their wings back. Sweep the wing and the air meets its leading edge at a slant, so it can fly closer to the speed of sound before shock waves form and drag climbs.

The whole aircraftDrag to turn it, and pinch to zoom. Pick a part to fly the camera to it.

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Specifications

Top speed: 945 km/h
Wingspan: 60.1 m
Max weight: 227,930 kg
Ceiling: 13,100 m
Range: 13,530 km
In 12 seconds: 3.2 km
Power: 2 × GEnx-1B or Trent 1000, about 280 kN each

Where it flew

Tokyo to Hong Kong

Tokyo Haneda. The simulator starts here, over today's ground and imagery of the place.

Fly it yourself

Take the Boeing 787 Dreamliner up in 3D, with its real weight, wing area and power.

Take off on two engines and climb to cruise.