What's the Deal With Boeing's Dreamliner?

Flying has become a pain in the ass. I remember being excited to fly when I was younger. Airports were this amazing portal that transported you to new and exotic places, the seats were comfortable, the stewardesses were pleasant, you were provided meals on most flights, and delays/issues didn’t feel as inevitable. Now they've done everything in their power to jam as many seats as possible in the cabins (including diminishing the size of bathrooms), the food is a bag of chips the size of a quarter, the stewardesses are simply assholes, airports in general have cut back on food options, all of which force you to deal with one line after another, and flight delays and cancellations are expected.  The fact that flying costs have actually increased while positive consumer experiences have decreased has given this form of transportation a negative stigma. Boeing is hoping to change that. Well, maybe not entirely. 

The 787 Dreamliner doesn’t provide the most space, I’m sure the airport will remain the same overcrowded unorganized hub that it has always been, the stewardesses will probably still be assholes, no planes are immune to delays and cancellations, and the food might still be shit. Aesthetically though, it’s a stunner. It has enhanced the visual experience for the rider with an interior that has taken notes from Virgin Air with a vibrant, club-like theme. The windows adjust dimness instead of needing shades and it does a great job of accommodating someone with physical or visual disabilities, but that’s not why this airliner is gaining prestige. The biggest changes are related to the technical make-up. 

The 787 is the first major airliner to use composite material for its frame. It’s the first production airliner with a fuselage assembled with a one-piece composite barrel which eliminates 1500 aluminum sheets and around 45000 fasteners; it has two new types of efficient engines, and it's extremely aerodynamic. I’m not a engineer so I don’t really know what the fuck all of that

technically means but, from what I gather, this means it’s efficient as shit. Plus, Rolls-Royce developed one of the engines so you know this thing is high class. Finally, it has an electric system that can detect maintenance needs, but they must have finally turned it off.

The concept began around 2003 and after 10 years the Dreamliner, loaded with excited passengers, finally took flight this weekend for the first time since it was sidelined three months ago due to safety issues. The biggest issues revolved around faulty batteries that melted on two of the planes. Thank you airplane analysis technology. Apparently lithium-ion batteries love catching on fire. 

So what does this hyped plane mean to us wary travelers? Not much, although hopefully the concept will decrease the costs of air travel due to not needing more fuel. More importantly, while this is not the greatest thing since porn, it’s biggest contribution hasn’t been mentioned. It reveals that in an age of computer entrepreneurs, entertainment moguls - things that lack real substance - people are still out there building and inventing legitimate products that will continue to evolve and really help mankind. It’s good to see companies continuing to push the boundaries and help enhance infrastructure, which is why the US used to flourish. Sure there were mistakes endured and money lost, but these are minor prices to pay when developing concepts that are revolutionary.

- Kyle