What it's like to fly on the Jetstar Boeing 787 Dreamliner

JETSTAR'S new Boeing 787 is described as a game-changing aircraft. Come aboard the Dreamliner for a look at what sets it apart from other planes.

THE first thing Alan Joyce noticed about Jetstar's new Dreamliner was just how quiet the innovative aircraft sounded racing down the runway and lifting into the sky above Seattle.

The Qantas Group CEO, who had just collected Australia's first 787 during a ceremony at Boeing's Everett factory, joked the manufacturer must have forgotten to hook both engines to the wing.

Large windows are one of the features of Jetstar's new Boeing 787.

There just wasn't enough noise, he reasoned as the aircraft's front wheels left the asphalt, for two GE motors to be driving the jet through the powerful departure manoeuvre.

I was sitting a few rows behind Mr Joyce as the aircraft speared into the sky, commencing the long journey across the Pacific Ocean to Australia, and I also noticed a definite lack of loud.

Jetstar flight attendant Emma was sitting opposite, in the crew seat beside the emergency escape, and we were talking about the sounds we could hear using nothing more robust than our best inside voices.

That's just not something you could do in any other aircraft, with the Dreamliner designed to be quiet and ease the stress on passengers during long-haul flights.

The hush is one of the best things about Boeing's newest wide-body jet - an aircraft currently considered to be the world's most advanced passenger plane - and something customers will notice when the new addition starts making passenger runs on November 13.

I was lucky enough to be on the Dreamliner's first Jetstar flight, a five-hour jaunt from Seattle to Hawaii on the two-day journey home to Australia, and I now know exactly why a fuss has been made about this model since the first one rolled out of Boeing's Everett factory in 2007.

Jetstar's Boeing 787 features seat-back screens for every economy passenger.

In addition to being blissfully quiet the windows are really big, and that makes such a difference.

Every passenger in the cabin can see outside, with the opening considerably larger than the previous industry standard, and positioned a little higher in the side wall so each extends well beyond the height of the grey leather seats.

I noticed just how much extra view was on offer descending to land at Honolulu airport, and from my seat beside a window on the right side of the plane I could see all the way across the cabin to catch a glimpse of the naval armada moored in Pearl Harbor.

The seats in economy seemed to be a little more bearable than other airlines and, while there was no more leg room, there was a generous amount of recline and the pan shifted to allow my body to relax into a more comfortable sleeping position.

A host of other innovations, from larger overhead lockers to seat-back screens for every economy passenger, have all been added to enhance passenger experience on long-haul journeys.

Although the 787 doesn't provide more leg room in economy, it does offer extra recline.

There are also a few things passengers can't see that will make an overseas hop seem more agreeable including advanced filtration systems that circulate clean air through the cabin, improved humidity to help hydration, and flight surfaces designed to reduce turbulence.

I'm not sure how efficient those features were, the five-hour journey just wasn't long enough to put real stress on the system, so I will reserve judgment until we complete the 10-hour leg to Melbourne.

But Australian travellers won't wait long to reach their own conclusions, with the country's first Dreamliner set to fly domestic routes from Melbourne to the Gold Coast and Cairns for a month before joining Jetstar's international fleet in December.

The writer travelled as a guest of Jetstar.