As Boeing 787s are making their way out to airlines at a reasonable rate, the first European Airlines to receive one has now been delivered to LOT Polish Airlines.
LOT Polish Airlines 787 – Image: The Boeing Company.
LOT are pretty excited about the 787, with Marcin Pirog, chief executive officer of LOT stating:
“This is a historic moment for LOT”
“I am convinced that the addition of the Dreamliner to the fleet of one of the world’s oldest airlines is a crucial moment that will launch a new era of European aviation. I believe it is also the beginning of an exciting journey for LOT with the most modern passenger airplane in the world.”
Now the press blurb is out of the way, lets get onto more important things – like routes and configurations.
LOT will be operating their 787’s initially on short haul European routes in December. However – no confirmed flights have been set for Europe yet.
In terms of Long Haul Deployments, Warsaw to Chicago will be the first service, along with the following subject to delivery of aircraft:
- Warsaw – Chicago from 16th January 2013
- Warsaw – Toronto from 1st February 2013
- Warsaw – New York JFK from 3rd February 2013
- Warsaw – Beijing from 3rd March 2013
Especially when it comes to 787 deployments, watch for short changes dependant on aircraft delivery.
In terms of seating, LOT are operating the planes in a 3 class service with 252 seats.:
- 18 Elite Club seats (Business Class) in a 2-2-2 configuration
- 21 Premium Club seats (Premium Economy) in a 2-3-2 configuration
- 213 seats in Economy Class in a 3-3-3 configuration
This delivery is the first of eight Dreamliners that LOT has on order.
Well I did say that 787 will start becoming common sooner rather than later. But its still nice to see a new operator take delivery of the aircraft.