Industry Boeing delivers first 787 Dreamliner to Shanghai Airlines

The delivery was celebrated during an event held at Boeing´s facility in Everett. Later that day, Shanghai Airlines´ first 787-9 Dreamliner was ferried to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, from where it has now started to operate crew familiarization flights on domestic routes.

Registered as B-1111, the first 787-9 for Shanghai Airlines is also the airline´s 100th aircraft to join the fleet. A respective sticker was applied on the fuselage. The China Eastern subsidiary airline is expected to use their 787-9 on both regional and long-range services.

Li Yangmin, vice president of China Eastern Group said: "We are so excited to take delivery of the very first Dreamliner for Shanghai Airlines, as well as China Eastern Group [...] With the introduction of these new airplanes, China Eastern Group will also officially launch the global leading new generation Passenger Service System. We are confident that all these efforts will help us significantly upgrade our services and we know our passengers will love it."

Shanghai Airlines´ 787-9s are configured in a two-class version and can accommodate 290 passengers. The aircraft itself has a range of up to 7,635 nautical miles (14,140km) and offers better fuel efficiency per seat.

Ihssane Mounir, senior vice president of Commercial Sales & Marketing for The Boeing Company commented: "We are thrilled to expand our long-standing partnership with Shanghai Airlines and the China Eastern Group. The 787 Dreamliner's unmatched performance, operating economics and comfort make it the perfect airplane for Shanghai Airlines to expand and enhance their international network."

At first, Shanghai Airlines will deploy the 787s on popular domestic routes from Shanghai to Chengdu and Beijing. Then, regional routes from Shanghai to Korea and Japan will be served by the state-of-the-art aircraft. When the 787 fleet increases, Shanghai Airlines also eyes to operate new long-haul routes.

Shanghai Airlines is a Chinese airline, headquartered in Shanghai. Both the city´s airports, Pudong and Hongqiao, are hubs for the carrier. The fleet consists of nearly 100 aircraft, including Airbus A330s, Boeing 737s, 767s and one 787-9. Shanghai Airlines flies to 85 destinations in eight countries.