Boeing starts 777-8F production

Boeing and its suppliers have started to manufacture major components for the prototype 777-8F. These include the wing, fuselage sections and keel beams, according to an internal news article for Boeing employees. [caption id="attachment_57290220" align="aligncenter" width="795"] A fuselage section for the first 777-8F. (Courtesy/Mitsubishi Heavy Industries)[/caption] Boeing is making the spars, skin panels and stringers for the 777-8F’s wings at its 1.3-million-square-foot Composite Wing Center, located north of the Boeing factory in Everett, Wash. The facility also makes the same wing parts for the passenger 777-9 and, soon, the 777-8. The composite wings on the 777-8F feature folding wingtips and are one of the key differences between the current-generation 777F and its successor. Japan is also a major center for 777X production. Subaru has started making the first 777-8F’s wing center section, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has started making the fuselage sections, and Kawasaki Heavy Industries has started making the keel beams, according to the Boeing article. These components will be shipped to the Everett assembly line by ocean freight, Boeing told Cargo Facts . Large-widebody competition Engineers have completed more than 80% of the drawings that define the configuration of the 777-8F and are continuing detailed design of systems and parts, Boeing said in the article. Lab testing of systems is also underway. Boeing expects to deliver the first 777-8F in 2028 . The planemaker has received firm orders for fifty-nine 777-8Fs from six carriers: Thirty-four from Qatar Airways ; Ten from Cargolux ; Seven from Lufthansa ; Four from China Airlines ; Two from ANA ; and Two from Silk Way West . Boeing and Airbus are competing fiercely in the large-widebody-freighter segment. Airbus started making components for its new A350F in the summer of 2023 and most recently completed the prototype’s pair of wings in May. Final assembly will soon begin in Toulouse, France. Airbus is building two A350F test aircraft and will begin flight tests in 2026. The first delivery is planned for the second half of 2027 . Cargo Facts Symposium, the quintessential event for stakeholders and key leaders in the global freighter and air cargo industries, will take place Oct. 22-24 at the Grand Hyatt in Nashville . Learn more and register today to take advantage of the early-bird rate.

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