The 777X’s first flight brought hundreds of onlookers to Boeing’s Future of Flight Aviation Center, within sight of the company’s Everett plant. “It went straight up!” one of the spectators. Jan 25, 2020 ‘It was awesome’: After Boeing’s 777X jet finishes its first flight, test pilots give the first review. By Alan Boyle on January 25, 2020 at 4:50 pm January 25, 2020 at 7:00 pm. The striking 3.3m folding wingtip of the first Boeing 777X flight test plane, which will fly in early 2019. The assembly process is entirely new.
Last year, Boeing was scheduled to take to the skies with the newest updated version of their Boeing 777 wide-body jet, called the Boeing 777X. However, the aircraft, which was unveiled in a very muted manner due to the media event coming very close after the Boeing 737 MAX grounding, had to push back its schedule of test flights and entry into service due to the issues that were discovered with the GE9X engine which was specifically designed for this aircraft. In the meanwhile, Boeing continued testing of the aircraft on the ground.
Now, Boeing has revealed that the Boeing 777X will be all set to fly for the first time on or after January 23, 2020. Here is the update they published online.
After years of design and testing, it’s almost time to fly. The #777X will make its first flight as early as January 23, subject to weather and other factors.
Learn more about the airplane: https://t.co/M5gH0ZMlCcpic.twitter.com/KRsZdDKA8q
— Boeing Airplanes (@BoeingAirplanes) January 21, 2020
![777x 777x](/uploads/1/3/5/9/135979477/228991002.jpg)
The first flight will be one of the many flights the aircraft will have to undergo for testing and certification. The test flight will be held on the morning of January 23, from the Everett facility, The Air Current wrote this morning before confirmation came from Boeing. But flight testing, just like rocket launches, is subject to all technical and weather-related criteria being a go, so I won’t be surprised in case they decided to take an extra day on the effort.
Update: Boeing has postponed the First Flight from January 23 to January 24, 2020, on account of the weather.
We are postponing the #777X first flight that was scheduled to take place tomorrow, Jan. 23, due to weather. The team is currently assessing the possibility of flying on January 24. Stay tuned for updates.
— Boeing Airplanes (@BoeingAirplanes) January 23, 2020
The 777X will be the largest twin-engine passenger jet to be built, which would be able to seat well over 400 passengers for the 777-9 variant.
You should be able to track the Boeing 777X first flight updates here.
More from Live from a Lounge
Today marked a milestone for the Boeing 777X program. I was watching the live stream to see the 10:10 am take off from runway 34L at Paine Field (PAE). The aircraft completed a four-hour low-speed functionality test for this initial test flight.
First Test Flight
This first flight was a basic functionality test flight at low speed and low altitude. The crew consisted of just the pilot and copilot as a full complement of engineers will be added in subsequent flights. Here is the test route for today’s maiden test flight.
The first flight required the aircraft to keep the flaps and landing gear extended. For this, a slow speed flight plan is required keeping the aircraft under 300 knots. The flight altitude was at 15,000 feet with an accent late in the flight.
The aircraft landed at 2:00 pm PST at Boeing Field (BFI) in Seattle on runway 14 Right. From there, it taxied on taxiway Bravo to the hangar.
Why This Test Is So Critical
777x First Flight Date
First things first, Boeing needed some good news and a morale booster. Thousands of employees were on hand to witness this first test flight.
Even though the 777 has been flying for over 20 years, there are new features and systems onboard that need testing prior to FAA certification. The wings feature retractable wingtips that must be extended and locked prior to the takeoff roll. On the landing roll, the computer retracts the wingtips when the landing speed reaches 50 knots.
Another new feature to be tested is the new GE 9X engines. These new engines are the largest production turbofan engines with the fan disk measuring 11 feet in diameter.
What Is Involved In The Testing Program
Before the Boeing 777X can receive an airworthiness certificate from the FAA, it will have to undergo an extensive testing program. The testing programs consist of three phases:
- Preparation – getting the aircraft ready for flight and doing ground testing on engines and taxi tests,
- Execution – flying the aircraft like today to check for anomalies and flight handling characteristics and
- Data collection and evaluation – this is where engineering looks at the actual flight data to see if it matches the computer models used for design.
Testing results from the flight crew are evaluated for a variety of parameters:
- Static and dynamic pressures,
- Vibrations,
- Aircraft handling,
- Performance of control surfaces and
- Engine performance.
You can see in the photo above the pressure monitoring unit is trailing the top of the tail. The static and dynamic pressures across the entire aircraft are monitored for evaluation. These evaluations are used to verify that computer data used during the design phase are correct.
![777x First Flight 777x First Flight](/uploads/1/3/5/9/135979477/247285437.jpg)
What’s Next For The Testing Program
The testing program for a new aircraft could take years. Since this aircraft is a follow-on to an existing program, the testing program should only take months to complete. After a few flights with just the pilots, an engineering team will be on board monitoring the test stations aboard the aircraft. There is no passenger interior installed, there are the test stations and water barrels. The water barrels are used if there is a weight and balance issue with a test flight. The testing phases will include:
- Airworthiness testing,
- Systems testing,
- Performance testing and
- FAA certification testing to obtain the required airworthiness certificate for passenger flights.
A Milestone For The 777X Program
Today is just the beginning of the flight testing program. There will be months of flight tests ahead with each test getting more involved in the flight envelope. There will testing to the extremes for extreme temperature operations, testing flight parameters such as rejected takeoff, wet landing to pressure and structual tests like a tail strike due to over-rotation on takeoff.
Today’s flight was a success. Now the real work begins so this aircraft can receive FAA certification to enter airline service.