787's being sent to the crusher

[Maverick]

Interesting, I wouldn't have expected this yet...

 

A world first: Two 10-year-old Boeing 787 to be dismantled for parts

BYRYTIS BERESNEVICIUS

2023-02-28

2 MINUTE READ

Thiago B Trevisan / Shutterstock.com

After 10 years of service, two Boeing 787-8 aircraft will be dismantled for parts. The aircraft, managed by an Irish asset management company, will be scrapped simultaneously. 

Dublin-based asset management and trading company EirTrade Aviation announced that it will manage the disassembly and consignment of the two Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Parts are expected to be available in late Q1 2023. 

According to Ken Fitzgibbon, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of EirTrade Aviation, the first 787s will soon be approaching their 12-year checks, so disassembly of the pair has come at the perfect time. Now operators and maintenance companies are able to source serviceable material (USM) for the 787, reducing maintenance costs. 

“As no B787s have been retired from commercial service to date, there is almost no USM market for this platform at the moment. We are entering into a specialist area and hope to become a market leader in the provision of USM for the platform which will enable the reduction of the cost of maintenance events for B787 aircraft owners,” Fitzgibbon said.  

The disassembly process will take place at Glasgow Prestwick Airport (PIK), Scotland, according to the Irish company. 

Two Boeing 787-8s are currently in PIK: VP-CVL and VP-CVM. The aircraft flew for the first time on June 13 and August 3, 2013, respectively, per planespotters.net data, and were delivered to Norwegian Air Shuttle in 2013. VP-CVL has been in storage at PIK since May 2019, while VP-CVM arrived at the Scottish airport in September 2019. 

“Understandably, there has been huge interest in these aircraft,” added Steven Trowell, Hangar Manager for EirTrade Aviation. According to Trowell’s estimates, it will take around three months to disassemble the aircraft. 

“We have, of course, already inducted Boeing and Airbus widebodies for disassembly and are no stranger to disassembling new technology aircraft having previously been involved in the first A380 aircraft to be retired and one of the first companies to disassemble the CFM56-7BE engine,” concluded Lee Carey, the Vice President of Asset Management at the Irish asset manager. 

While the two Boeing 787-8s will become the first commercial aircraft of the type to be scrapped, Boeing previously scrapped another frame, namely a Boeing 787-8 bearing Manufacturer Serial Number (MSN) 40694 and Line Number (LN) 5 in April 2018. The aircraft was a testbed for the type, having flown for the first time in June 2010. It was never delivered to an airline and was stored at Paine Field Airport (PAE), in Everett, Washington, the United States, since October 2013, according to planespotters.net data. 

[Super 80]

I can't remember the exact cut-off, but 787-8s built beginning at some point in 2018 have greater commonality with the 787-9 and 787-10 than those built before. I would imagine a similar fate awaits other early 787-8s.

Edited March 1, 2023 by Super 80

[conehead]

"According to Ken Fitzgibbon, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of EirTrade Aviation, the first 787s will soon be approaching their 12-year checks, so disassembly of the pair has come at the perfect time."

I wonder how much it costs to do the 12-year check?

[J.O.]

Given the decision to part them out, someone must have decided there’s more money in that than in doing the heavy check.

[Seeker]

7 hours ago, J.O. said:

Given the decision to part them out, someone must have decided there’s more money in that than in doing the heavy check.

Yeah, the title of the thread is a little misleading.  Sent to the crusher?  Not so much.  More like; "carefully disassembled for high value parts." 

[Maverick]

As some of you may know, I spent most of the deep dark days of covid in Marana tending to our parked aircraft. I was talking to one of the big guys that ran the place (Ascent MRO Marana). They were asked if they could handle end-of-life 787's and they declined. They can't be scrapped out like other airframes can. They're predominantly carbon fibre so the primary structural elements can't be re-used or recycled like aluminum. Basically they have to be ground up and buried like windmills. Definitely going to be an issue going forward with the 787/A350/A220 etc.

[Floyd]

In days past when trying to avoid saying you were a pilot (Kip, perhaps???), we sometimes said we were "in high speed aluminum tubing".  Now, considering the end of life classification of scrapped carbon fibre structures, should we say were are "hazardous material operators"?

[Kip Powick]

Ah yes...what did you do for a living sir... ???

Well sonny, back in the good old days,  I was a directional controller for high speed aluminum tubing ...

but today the youngsters are now  known as a directional controller for high speed  carbon fibre reinforced polymer tubing.

[Guest1]

1 hour ago, Kip Powick said:

Ah yes...what did you do for a living sir... ???

Well sonny, back in the good old days,  I was a directional controller for high speed aluminum tubing ...

but today the youngsters are now  known as a directional controller for high speed  carbon fibre reinforced polymer tubing.

'would it not be more accurate to say "a computer augmented directional controller"? 

[Tango Foxtrot]

A 787 fuselage cut into sections would make a very cool garage

[Kip Powick]

How about a garage door decal....cheaper 

[PinC]

Carbon Reinforced Aviation Plastic

[Maverick]

11 hours ago, PinC said:

Carbon Reinforced Aviation Plastic

I see what you did there!