Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental conducts successful first flight

The Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental successfully began its flight test program on March 20th, taking off from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., before more than several thousand employees, customers, suppliers and community leaders. The airplane landed four hours and 25 minutes later at Boeing Field in Seattle. The 747-8 Intercontinental’s first flight marks the beginning of a flight test program that will finish in the fourth quarter. Korean Air and VIP customers have joined launch customer Lufthansa in ordering a total of 33 747-8 Intercontinentals. First delivery of the 747-8 Intercontinental is scheduled for the fourth quarter. Air China also has agreed to order five Intercontinentals, pending government approval. The airplane is painted in a new Sunrise livery of red-orange and is a significant departure from Boeing’s standard blue. The new colors honor many key Boeing customers whose cultures recognize these colors as symbols of prosperity and good luck. The Sunrise livery only will appear on the first 747-8 Intercontinental, which is scheduled to be delivered to a VIP customer at the end of the year.