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Vanguard Airlines 787-9 "2013-"



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Medviation, Runway25Design

Vanguard Airlines 787-9 "2013-"

On April 26, 2004, Vanguard Airlines became the launch customer for Boeing's new jet, then dubbed the 7E7. Designed to replace the existing 767 production line and bridge the gap between the 767 and 777, the 787 Dreamliner was to be the first production airliner with the fuselage comprising one-piece composite barrel sections instead of the multiple aluminum sheets. Boeing stated the 787 would be approximately 20 percent more fuel-efficient than the 767, with approximately 40 percent of the efficiency gain from the engines, plus gains from aerodynamic improvements, increased use of lighter-weight composite materials, and advanced systems. It's slightly thinner capacity than existing model 777s and extended range made it ideal for flying to cities that normally wouldn't merit a direct flight from certain locations. The airplane first flew on December 15th, 2009, almost two years late.

The first 787 was officially delivered to Vanguard Airlines on September 25, 2011, at the Boeing factory. On the 26th, it flew to Vanguard's hubs from the West, to East coast, starting in San Francisco, onto Denver, Houston, Detroit, Newark, Washington D.C., and finally arriving in Memphis at the companies' Headquarters. The 787 was immediately put into proving runs for crew familiarization. However, several Dreamliner battery incidents caused all 787s to be grounded for four months from January 2013, and Vanguard's 787s did not resume operations until mid-May that year. In December of 2013, Vanguard flew the 787 on its first international route, Houston Intercontinental to Shanghai Pudong. Though Vanguard did not launch all variants of the 787, Vanguard Airlines was the North American launch customer for the 787-9 and 787-10, stretched versions of the base 787-8 model. Vanguard used the -9 Dreamliner to inaugurate a new brand image, bringing the airline into the next generation while maintaining history. The next generation of the tried and true "V" was unveiled in Seattle with the world watching, and a system tour of the new brand image followed.

Pictured is the 787-9, which arrived at the airline in late 2014. The bulk of the 787-9s are intended to supplement or replace the aging 777-200ERs on International long-haul service from Houston, San Francisco, Newark, and Detroit. The -9 variant is the most common variant ordered by Vanguard, with 46 airplanes either on order or delivered as of September 2020.

Aircraft 8314 is named "Mississippi Delta" after the region in which the airline got its start.

Made some revisions to the 2015 design, as well as applied it to the revamped 787-9. :)



    ****ing sexy af Bobzie

    beautiful, loving those metallic engines :wub:

    Looking awesome!

    200_d.gif

    This looks very nice!

    Shiny! :)

    Absolutely incredible!

    Yeeeehaw

    Excellent!

    Shiny .. Clucky likes shiny :wub: