See the Boeing 787 at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Darwin airports

By David Flynn, May 23 2012
See the Boeing 787 at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Darwin airports

The revolutionary Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrives in Australia at 4pm on Thursday May 24th, as a guest of Qantas, which has ordered 50 of the next-gen jetliners to be shared between the Qantas and Jetstar fleets.

The Boeing 787 is constructed from 50 per cent composite materials and according to Boeing uses 20 per cent less fuel and has a noise footprint 60 per cent lower than similarly-sized aircraft.

Over the next week it'll visit Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Darwin (with a side-trip to Auckland snuck in along the way).

Sadly, the general public won't have access to the aircraft – the only way to get a peek inside will be an invitation-only basis from Boeing, Qantas and Jetstar.

However, you'll still have a few chances to catch a glimpse of the Boeing 787 at each airport, especially when Qantas takes the sleek 787 on special VIP flights from Sydney to Brisbane and Melbourne.

The SpottersWiki website lists several great viewing locations around the perimeters of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane airports.

For the best chance of knowing when to look for the 787, you can use the free FlightAware website or apps to track the flight.

The special DreamTour airplane flies under the callsign BOE787, for which there's a live FlightAware web page already available.

If you're using one of the FlightAware mobile apps for your smartphone or tablet – they're available for the iPhone and iPad plus Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone devices – plug in BOE787 as the flight number to search for.

Here is the Boeing 787's Aussie schedule as supplied to Australian Business Traveller by Boeing.

Thursday May 24: Sydney

Boeing says According to Boeing, the 787 is expected to arrive at Sydney International Airport around 4pm and will spend Friday as "a rest day".

Saturday May 26: Sydney & Brisbane

Today's the day for an exclusive Qantas Boeing 787 'Dream Flight' from Sydney to Brisbane and back, affording some great opportunities to see the 787 do its stuff.

Qantas says its Dream Flight is due to depart Sydney Airport by 10.30am, and is due into Brisbane around 11.30am – there's been some to-and-fro on these timings so don't cut your viewing times too fine!

Australian Business Traveller will be on board the Qantas Dream Flight, so keep an eye on our @AusBT Twitter channel for photos and updates throughout the day.

The 787 will spend the next five hours tucked away in a Qantas hangar for invitation-only tours by Qantas staff, VIPs and some lucky Qantas Frequent Flyer members, before a "twilight departure" from Brisbane at 5pm for a 6.30pm arrival in Sydney.

According to the official @BrisbaneAirport Twitter feed, the "best vantage point" will be at the old International Terminal, on the corner of Lomandra Drive and Boronia Road.

Sunday May 27: Sydney & Melbourne

The Boeing 787 is off to Melbourne for the day. Wheels-up at Sydney Airport is around 8am, arriving into Melbourne around 9.30am.

After a full day of tours it will fly back to Sydney in the evening, although Boeing hasn't yet advised times for departure from Melbourne or the return into Sydney.

Monday May 28: Sydney

This is the 787's last full day in Sydney, where it will host more tours – including 10 guests of Boeing and Australian Business Traveller for an exclusive guided tour on Monday afternoon.

Tuesday May 29: Sydney

Boeing tells us the 787 Dreamliner is scheduled to leave Sydney at 10am. Next stop, Auckland.

Thursday May 31: Darwin

After spending the previous two days in Auckland, the Boeing 787 is due to arrive into Darwin at 4.30pm for an overnight stop.

Friday June 1: Darwin

Today marks the end of the Dreamliner's down-under sojourn. It will fly out of Darwin at 9.30am on Friday June 1 en route to Uzbekistan and Morocco.

For more news, reviews and the very latest info for business travellers, follow us on Twitter: we're @AusBT.

Also in AusBT's extensive coverage of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner...

David

David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.


Hi Guest, join in the discussion on See the Boeing 787 at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Darwin airports