A tale of two planes - how the Dreamliner compares to the A330

THE new Jetstar Dreamliner was followed by a A330 as it flew across the Pacific today, and the Dreamliner took half an hour less, and 15 per cent less fuel.

Photo: Hamish Blair Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, Jetstar CEO Jayne Hrdlicka and the flight crew are welcomed by Victorian premier Denis Napthine as Jetstar's new 787 Dreamliner arrives at the hangar at Melbourne Airport on October 9, 2013 in Melbourne, Australia

THERE were two Jetstar aircraft crossing the Pacific on Wednesday, but one performed better than the other.

There weren't any problems, both planes were on schedule and purring like the proverbial kitten, it all came down to technology.

The first was the low-cost carrier's regular flight from Honolulu to Melbourne, an Airbus A330 that left the popular holiday destination at breakfast time to carry Australian holiday makers home after vacations basking in the tropical heat.

The other was Jetstar's new Dreamliner completing flight JQ7878, the second leg of the historic delivery run ferrying Australia's first 787 from the Boeing factory near Seattle to Melbourne.

Dreamliner touches down in Melbourne

Both aircraft were modern, both were piloted by experienced crews at their top of their game, but the Dreamliner made better time and without guzzling as much fuel.

"There's a Jetstar A330 following us home to Melbourne today,'' 787 pilot Jeremy Schmidt announced from the cockpit before the 10-hour haul.

"We (the Dreamliner) will take 10 hours and 20 minutes to complete the journey while the A330 will take 10 hours and 50 minutes, we will use 15 per cent less fuel, and we have 25 more seats on board.

"Anyone that says (the Dreamliner) isn't a game-changing aircraft just needs to look at the statistics.''

Jetstar has ordered 14 of the innovative wide-body jets from Boeing, intending to replace the existing A330s on long-haul journeys to destinations from Singapore and Japan to Thailand and Hawaii.

The A330s will eventually be integrated into the Qantas arsenal, to simplify the Flying Kangaroo fleet and allow for the retirement of the aging 767s, and will start on domestic routes after a complete cabin refurbishment.

While the technical crew - the pilots in the cockpit - were fascinated with the data produced by the aircraft, the Qantas and Jetstar staffers sitting in the back of the plane were a little more emotional about a journey that was the result of seven year's work.

Buying a Boeing isn't as simple as picking up a new car, especially when it's a new model ordered during the early days of the design process long before the first test unit even rolled off the line. It requires years of work by a team of people on two continents.

"It's a massive effort and we had a huge project team that worked on it,'' Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce explained as the new Dreamliner cruised over the Pacific's deep blue on the first day of the ferry flight.

"We have to make decisions on seats - which seats, how many seats - where do the galleys go, where do the toilets go and what will be the specs on the toilets, what colours the curtains will be.

"It's a never-ending list and it takes a huge amount of effort to get it right, and it's the attention to detail that's key.''

Mr Joyce was in Seattle to accept the keys to the Dreamliner, during an early-morning ceremony at the Boeing Delivery Centre a stone's throw from the Everett factory where the plane was built, with the moment closing a circle for the Qantas boss.

The Dreamliner was ordered in late 2005, when the affable airline executive was serving as Jetstar's inaugural CEO, and he was there to collect the first plane with a big orange star on the tail as the man in charge of an ever-evolving Qantas.

Mr Joyce has taken delivery of dozens of new aircraft during his many years in the aviation industry, but he said receiving the Dreamliner was significant because it was the first time he had been responsible for the whole process from ordering to collection.

And while he can't remember any special details about the time he made the commitment to buy the 787-800, he is sure he will long recall the moments of the day he welcomed the passenger-friendly model into the Australian fleet.

"I think there are a few things I will remember,'' he said not long after signing the handover papers with Jetstar CEO Jayne Hrdlicka and Boeing executive Larry Loftis.

"Seeing the aircraft when we first came into the Boeing Delivery Centre, with the Jetstar scheme on it and the Aussie flag on it, that was amazing.

"Boeing giving us the keys to the aircraft - that's an historic thing we have done, it used to be the keys to the cockpit but because of security now that's more a symbolic thing - and cutting the ribbon.

"I think it's the people I will remember, the excitement of the pilots in the cockpit as they were pushing back the aircraft for the first time, and our fleet captain Jeremy Schmidt giving his PA because you could hear he was a little bit nervous.

"And Jayne and myself congratulating each other when the aircraft got into the air, shaking hands, they are the little things I will remember.''

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