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Boeing and Cathay donate world’s first B777
September 21st 2018
U.S. manufacturer, Boeing, and Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways have donated the first-ever Boeing 777 airplane to the Pima Air & Space Museum in Arizona, one of the world’s largest facilities devoted to celebrating aerospace. Read More »
The iconic aircraft (line number WA001 and registered B-HNL) was transferred from Cathay’s Hong Kong base to Tucson, Arizona, on Tuesday. The jet will be displayed permanently at the museum alongside more than 350 other notable aircraft.
Boeing first flew the B777-200 aircraft on June 12, 1994 and continued to use it as a test airplane for several years. The aircraft joined the Cathay fleet in 2000, logging 20,519 flights and recording 49,687 hours of flying time
“Cathay Pacific has been instrumental in the tremendous success of the 777 program. The airline contributed greatly to the airplane’s original design and has been one of its biggest ambassadors ever since. And now they are a launch customer for our new 777X airplane. We are thrilled to partner with Cathay on this donation to the museum as a way to share the remarkable story of the Boeing 777 for years come,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO, Kevin McAllister.
In the 1990s, Cathay was one of a handful of airlines to provide input for the 777 during the design phase. This gave the Swire Group carrier an opportunity to refine the jet’s features to suit its needs. Among the requests were a cabin cross-section similar to the B747, a modern ‘glass’ cockpit and fly-by-wire system.
“As the world’s very first 777, B-HNL holds a very special place in the history of both our airline and that of commercial aviation, and we are very pleased it will soon bring enjoyment to enthusiasts at its new home in Arizona,” said Cathay Pacific CEO, Rupert Hogg. He added: “Our 777-200 aircraft have served us exceptionally well over the last two decades, and as we progressively retire these over the months ahead, we eagerly look forward to welcoming the state-of-the art 777-9 aircraft into our fleet from 2021.”
For now, Cathay has four additional “classic” B777-200s in its active fleet – B-HNA, B-HNB, B-HNC and B-HND. The airline also operates 13 B777-300s on regional flights and 53 long-haul B777-300ERs.
The oneworld member has 21 B777-9Xs on order from 2021.
