MSNBC predicts future. Article on Boeing premier in two hours is set in the past tense.

[Cannikin]

Again...the 787 premier is at 3:30pacific time.

Boeing's party is over; now it's crunch time

As soon as the sun set on Dreamfest ’07, assembly workers rolled the airplane back into Boeing’s massive aircraft factory and rolled up their sleeves for 24/7 rework.


For a few, high-profile hours on Sunday, Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner captured the world’s attention as it was unveiled during a multimedia extravaganza. Like a newly crowned beauty queen, the revolutionary commercial jet basked in the global spotlight, giving millions of people a peek at aviation’s future.

But as soon as the sun set on Dreamfest ’07, assembly workers rolled the airplane back into Boeing’s massive aircraft factory and rolled up their sleeves for 24/7 rework. What the world didn’t see under the plane’s shiny new paint job, were the 1,000 temporary fasteners that need to be replaced, its half-empty belly that still needs to be stuffed with 60 miles of wiring or the avionics systems that still need to be installed and tested.

On Saturday, Germany’s Air Berlin made a $4 billion order for 25 Dreamliners. As of today, 787 has already racked up a record 677 orders from 47 airlines, making it the biggest selling new commercial jet in history – and it hasn’t even flown yet. The plane, which sells for between $146 million to $200 million, is sold out until 2014.

Despite the unprecedented enthusiasm, Boeing is far from cashing in on the 787. Executives, who just hours ago were popping the champagne, are now working around the clock to turn their Dreamliner into a flying reality – and do it under rigorous and tight deadlines.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19665201/from/RS.2/