Uh-oh. Fires and planes don’t mix well. A test flight of the upcoming Boeing 787 Dreamliner made an emergency landing yesterday after smoke filled the back cabin and the pilot lost some of the flight and engine controls including the flight displays and auto-throttle. Apparently flames could be seen in the rear electrical and electronics bay that’s located under the passenger cabin. No one was hurt, but the plane made an emergency landing in Laredo, Texas where the 30-40 on-board personal safely evacuated on the pull-out inflatable slides. At least that’s fun.
The first production Dreamliners are expected to be delivered to customers starting mid-February 2011 and it’s unknown at this time if this fire is an isolated incident or widespread enough to affect delivery. But after years of delays, it sure seems that the 787 is the world’s largest vaporware.