Boeing’s first large cargo freighter was brought over to Seattle from Taiwan last night for testing. This plane is the hacked 747 which has been modified to carry large pieces of the new 787 to Everett for final assembly.
flightaware.com/live/flight/BOE876
Before/After pictures:
myaviation.net/search/search … NzQ3QkMnIA
The full text of Boeing’s News Release for “Boeing 747 Large Cargo Freighter Arrives in Seattle” is located at
http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2006/q3/060916a_nr.html. The article includes pictures of the landing at KBFI and the interior.
SEATTLE, Sept. 16, 2006 – Boeing (NYSE: BA) today celebrated the arrival of the first of three specially modified 747-400 passenger jets that will be used to transport the large composite sections and wings of the all-new Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The 747-400 Large Cargo Freighter (LCF) touched down at Seattle’s Boeing Field at 8:08 a.m. PDT, ending a non-stop, 13-hour, 17-minute flight from Taipei, Taiwan.
The LCF’s arrival in Seattle signals a new phase of the airplane’s flight test program, which began when the airplane made its first flight in Taipei on Sept. 9, 2006. Since then, the LCF successfully completed two additional flights, which demonstrated its airworthiness and ability to complete the ferry flight to Seattle.
“It was a beautiful flight,” said Capt. Joe MacDonald, 747 chief pilot. “The LCF is such an important part of Boeing’s business going forward.”
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I wonder if they will make it available to customers??
Allegedly you can buy a Beluga if you have enough Euros.
Volga-Dnepr perhaps??
Be lucky
David
The 3 conversions for Boeing are for their exclusive use, but I’m sure if you offer Boeing and Evergreen enough money they’ll convert another for you.
I doubt many customers are looking for a high-volume unpressurized freighter.
Tennis anyone!?
The News Tribune recently talked with Mike Bunney, Boeing’s director of global logistics for the 787, about the 747-LCF system.
http://www.thenewstribune.com/business/story/6119296p-5360328c.html
Alternate Link:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ylnfo4
Picture: Boeing reveals new livery and Dreamlifter name for 747 Large Cargo Freighter
By Justin Wastnage
Boeing has unveiled the first pictures of the modified 747-400 Large Cargo Freighter (LCF) to be used to transport 787 sections (pictured below).
The aircraft is officially dubbed the DreamLifter, in reference to the 787’s Dreamliner monicker.
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There is also a four page article on the 747 LCF in the November 2006 issue of “Boeing Frontiers: Something Big is in the Air”. The article is in Adobe Acrobat format.
I wonder how many gallons/pounds of paint it takes to paint a super lifter.
That thread is 9 days older than this one and contains more info.
Thank you for letting me know. I removed the link to the picture. Besides, the article includes a better quality picture.
Saw the Boeing 747-LCF (Large Cargo Freighter), also known as “DreamLifter”, flying over Spokane today. It made several landings at GEG. It was using call sign BOE876 on Flightaware. Quite an impressive airplane.
Boomer