Wed, Apr 21, 2010
Majority Of Testing Will Be Based In Palmdale
The second Boeing747-8 Freighter, RC521, landed in Palmdale, CA,
Monday, marking the beginning of a planned transition of 747-8
Freighter testing to Southern California. The more than four-hour
flight from Boeing Field in Seattle included testing on avionics
and cruise performance.
"Taking the airplane to Palmdale is a big step," said Mo
Yahyavi, vice president and general manager of the 747 program.
"The team is focused on ensuring a seamless transition into the
next phase of the flight-test program as we prepare to expand
testing of the 747-8 Freighter's performance characteristics."
The airplane will be stationed in Palmdale for the majority of
its scheduled flight-test program. The crew will conduct several
tests on the airplane with fuel-mileage and engine-performance
testing as key focus areas.
"Palmdale provides an excellent test environment for the 747-8
Freighter," said Andy Hammer, 747 test program manager. "It allows
us to take full advantage of one of the world's premier
experimental test flight facilities and the excellent weather
conditions to meet our flight-test requirements on the road to
obtaining our amended type certification."
A contingent of employees has been stationed at Palmdale for the
testing, including flight-test engineers and the support personnel
who prepare the airplane for each day's flights. In the coming
weeks, the two other 747-8 airplanes in the flight-test fleet will
join RC521 in Southern California.
The entire flight-test program calls for the three airplanes to
perform a total of about 3,700 hours of ground and air testing. The
first 747-8 Freighter delivery to Cargolux is planned for the
fourth quarter of this year.
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