BOEING 747-8 FREIGHTER BEGINS FLIGHT-TEST OPERATIONS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

KUALA LUMPUR, April 20 (Bernama) -- The second Boeing 747-8 Freighter,
the RC521, landed in Palmdale, California yesterday, marking the beginning of a
planned transition of 747-8 Freighter testing to Southern California.

The more than four-hour flight from Boeing Field in Seattle included testing
on avionics and cruise performance.

"Taking the airplane to Palmdale is a big step," Vice President and General
Manager of the 747 programme, Mo Yahyavi said in the statement released
Monday.

"The team is focused on ensuring a seamless transition into the next phase
of the flight-test programme as we prepare to expand testing of the 747-8
Freighter’s performance characteristics," he added.

The airplane will be stationed in Palmdale for the betetr part of its
scheduled flight-test programme. The crew will conduct several tests on the
airplane with fuel-mileage and engine-performance testing, as key focus areas.

"Palmdale provides an excellent test environment for the 747-8 Freighter," ,
747 Test Programme Manager, Andy Hammer said.

"It allows us to take full advantage of one of the world's premier
experimental test flight facilities. The excellent weather conditions also meet
our flight-test requirements on the road to obtaining our amended type
certification," he explained.

A contingent of employees have been stationed at Palmdale for the testing,
including flight-test engineers and the support personnel who prepare the
airplane for each day’s flights.

In the coming weeks, the two other 747-8 airplanes in the flight-test fleet
will join the RC521 in Southern California.

The entire flight-test programme calls for the three airplanes to perform a
total of about 3,700 hours of ground and air testing.

According to Boeing, the first 747-8 Freighter delivery to Cargolux is
planned for the fourth quarter of this year.

-- BERNAMA




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