All Nippon Airways Co.'s first Boeing 787 landed Wednesday in Japan, ending more than three years of delays for the initial operator of the aircraft.
ANA, which took delivery of the 787 two days ago in Everett, Washington, landed the plane at 9:03 a.m. The airline plans the jet's first commercial flight next month before starting regular services in November.
The airline, the biggest customer for the medium-size jet, aims to use the plane to pare fuel costs and add destinations, such as Frankfurt, currently only reachable with larger jets. ANA, set to receive 12 of the planes over the next six months, is boosting international flights by 16 percent in the year ending next March 31.
"The plane will help ANA reduce fuel costs and should improve its bottom line," said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees around ¥50 billion in assets at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. "It's a plus for Boeing as well, as they can finally start cranking up their production rate and filling orders."
ANA has 55 of the 787 Dreamliners, whose fuselage is made of composite materials, on order. The plane is 20 percent more fuel-efficient to operate than comparably sized jets due to lighter materials and an all-electric system that doesn't divert air from the engines for power, according to Boeing.
The use of the composite materials and manufacturing process pushed back the jet's entry into service seven times since 2007. ANA was originally due to receive the jet in 2008.
The carrier predicts the planes will save it about ¥10 billion a year in jet kerosene costs after it gets all of the planes by March 2018. The carrier is predicting net income of ¥20 billion in the year ending March 31.