Inside the New Boeing 777X, Worlds Largest Twin-Engine Passenger Jet – Business Insider

The project is one of Boeing’s most ambitious and aims to create a twin-engine offering with a capacity comparable to that of the 747 combined with efficiencies comparable to a 787 Dreamliner.

We went onboard the first production Boeing 777X, on display at the Dubai Airshow. Take a look inside.

In January 2020, the Boeing 777X took to the skies for the first time in an incredible preview of the next generation of commercial airplanes.

Boeing launched the 777X program in November 2013 with two aircraft, the larger 777-9 and the smaller 777-8. Each aircraft is capable of flying around 400 passengers more than 7,000 nautical miles.

Source: Boeing

The 777-9 will be the first of the two aircraft to enter service, with a range of 7,285 nautical miles and a maximum capacity of 426. From nose to tail, Boeing’s largest has a length of 251 feet and nine inches, commanding a list price of $442.2 million.

Source: Boeing

Boeing didn’t announce any new orders for the aircraft at the event but has an order book with more than 300 commitments from some of the world’s leading airlines.

Source: Boeing

The open configuration of the aircraft, with a clear line of sight from one end to the other, truly highlights just how massive it is. The 777X is 9 feet and five inches longer compared to Boeing’s next largest airplane, the 777-300ER.

Source: Boeing

There are no overhead bins or cushy first class seats to be found in the flying testbeds. Rather, it’s a barebones interior with workstations for flight test engineers and myriad data collection systems.

A given flight test will see around 120 engineers onboard collecting data, monitoring the aircraft’s systems, and ensuring the plane is doing what it’s supposed to.

“We wanted to make sure that we gave ourselves and our teams the time to do all the work that they need to do on the airplane and we gave the regulators the time that they need to work on the airplane,” Fleming said, adding that customers will receive a “mature” plane as a result.

And so far, Boeing is very confident in the ability of the aircraft that will likely be its redemption from the 737 Max scandal that plagued the manufacturer from March 2019. “The performance of the airplane from a reliability standpoint is much better than a lot of the airplanes that you’ve seen in the past,” Fleming said.

Powering the 777X is another feat of aviation engineering, the GE Aviation GE9X engine exclusive to this aircraft. The GE9X engine is the largest jet engine in the world, making it a fitting choice for the largest twin-engine passenger plane in the world.

Meet the GE Aviation GE9X engine powering the Boeing 777x.

“It produces 10,000 pounds less thrust than the current 777-300ER because these wings produce more lift than the original 777,” one Boeing engineer told Insider. But even with less thrust, there’s no loss in speed capability.

Cameras pointed directly at the engines allow engineers to monitor and collect data on the GE9X during test flights.

All pilots have to do is turn a knob right before takeoff and directly after landing to extend and stow the wingtips, respectively.

Heather Ross, Boeing’s deputy chief test pilot and engineering test pilot, told Insider that one of her favorite parts of flying the 777X is that it’s familiar compared to other aircraft in the Boeing fleet. “For this airplane, it’s just so similar to the 777 [and] 787 … and it’s fun to see the new systems on the airplane,” Ross told Insider.

That familiarity is intentional as Boeing 777X pilots will be able to fly the 787 Dreamliner with just a “differences” training as opposed to a full type rating course. Boeing designed the aircraft with the “same control laws” and “same type of flight control architecture” to achieve that goal, Ross said, describing it as the “guts” of the aircraft.

Inside the cockpit, Boeing opted for a cockpit more similar to that found on the 787 Dreamliner aircraft rather than the previous generation 777 aircraft to further align the two.

There are some differences, though, hence the need for additional training for pilots flying both aircraft types.

The 777X, for example, has touch-screen displays, a brake to exit system, a ground camera maneuvering system, and the ability to connect an iPad to the displays through a secure firewall, Ross said.

Pilots can use their iPads, known as “electronic flight bags,” to show charts on the cockpit’s screens so that attention can always be on the main displays.

Each airline will choose its own seats and interior design for the aircraft; though, the 3-4-3 configuration will likely remain.

So far, there are eight customers for the 777X including Emirates, Qatar Airways, British Airways, Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific Airways, All Nippon Airways, Etihad Airways, and Singapore Airlines.