Boeing Reaches 790 Orders for the 787

Boeing said Thursday it finalized a deal with British Airways, increasing to 790, the orders for its long awaited 787 Dreamliner plane during the last three years. British Airways' order for 24 Dreamliners gives the plane one of the industry's most successful launches ever, even though the airliner has yet to fly. The 787, Boeing's first newly designed jet since airlines started flying the 777 in l995, will be the world's first large commercial airplane made mostly of light, durable, less-corrosive, carbon-filter composites. Boeing says its new plane will be cheaper to maintain and offers better fuel efficiency and more passenger comforts than planes flying today. A quarter of the systems on board the 787, by value, are made by Cedar Rapids, Iowa based Rockwell Collins.