New 787 schedule is "weeks away": Boeing engineer

Boeing Co is "weeks away" from issuing an updated test flight and delivery schedule for its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner, a Boeing engineer said on Thursday.

Boeing Co is "weeks away" from issuing an updated test flight and delivery schedule for its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner, a Boeing engineer said on Thursday.

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The company, which announced in June another delay for the first flight of the revolutionary carbon-composite aircraft, has not given a new target date.

Airlines with orders for the 787 are eager for Boeing to issue the new schedule. Boeing data show more than 850 orders for the 787.

"I think we're just weeks away from doing that," said Cris Nusoke, chief engineer for the 787 program, speaking at a breakfast meeting of the Organization of Black Airline Pilots Inc in Atlanta.

The aircraft, already two years behind its original schedule, was set to fly in the second quarter of 2009. It was delayed so Boeing could address a structural problem.

Chicago-based Boeing and rival Airbus have struggled as carriers and cargo operators grapple with the global recession.