Boeing 787 Spotting Guide

Background and Development of the 787 Dreamliner

Air France Boeing 787-9, Registration F-HBA

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is a long-range, mid-size wide-body, twin-engine jet airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

Its variants seat 242 to 335 passengers in typical three-class seating configurations. It is Boeing's most fuel-efficient airliner and is a pioneering airliner with the use of composite materials as the primary material in the construction of its airframe.

The 787 was designed to be 20% more fuel efficient than the Boeing 767.

Final assembly takes place at the Boeing Factory in Everett, Washington, and at the Boeing South Carolina factory in North Charleston, South Carolina.

Boeing 787-8 and 787-9

The 787-8 was the first variant produced, and was followed by the stretched 787-9.

Saudia Boeing 787-10 (Photo courtesy of Boeing)

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) aircraft type designator system classifies the 787-8 and 787-9 under the codes "B788" and "B789", respectively.

Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner

The 787-10, which is 18' longer than the 787-9, was unveiled on February 17, 2017, at the Boeing South Carolina assembly plant. Its first flight was on March 31, 2017.

Delivery of the first 787-10 was on March 25, 2018, to launch customer Singapore Airlines. United Airlines began passenger service with the 787-10 in early 2019.

The 787-10 is being assembled only in South Carolina.

 

Boeing 787 Dreamliner Family Size & Capacity

787 Model	Overall Length	Passengers
787-8	186' 1"	242 - 359
787-9	206' 1"	290 - 406
787-10	224' 0"	330 - 440

787 Orders and Deliveries

Total Boeing 787 orders and deliveries are shown in the table below (through August, 2025).

Boeing 787 Model	Orders	Deliveries
787-8	431	398
787-9	1,372	676
787-10	396	124
TOTAL	2,199	1,198

 

Boeing 787 Spotting Tips

The Dreamliner's distinguishing features include one engine under each wing, swept wings with no winglets, two 4-wheel main landing gear, a sleek pointed nose, and noise-reducing chevrons on its engine nacelles. Also, the 787 does not have winglets or sharklets, which are used on the similar shaped Airbus A350. 787-8 is 186-feet in length and is normally configured for 242 - 359 passengers. 787-9 is 20-feet longer than the 787-8, achieved by adding two additional five-frame (10-foot) extensions, one before the wing and one after, to increase the length from the 787-8. The most visible change from the 787-8 on the exterior is 5 additonal windows in front of the wing. 787-10 features an additional five-frame (10-foot) extension before the wing and one four-frame (8-foot) extension aft of the wing, closer to the tail. This increased the length of the 787-10 by 18-feet from the 787-9, and 38-feet from the 787-8. The most visible change from the 787-8 on the exterior is 10 additonal windows in front of the wing. Shown below is a side-by-side comparison of the Boeing 787-8 (top), 787-9 (middle) and Boeing 787-10 (bottom).

Close-up view of the jagged trailing edge chevrons on the Boeing 787 engine housing.

Front fuselage view of a Boeing 787. Seen here is KLM Royal Dutch Airlines 787-9 "Sunflower", Registration No. PH-BHC (Photo by DELEHELLE Eric)

The stretched wings of a Boeing 787. Seen here is Air France 787-9 Registration No. F-HBA (Photo by DELEHELLE Eric)

The underside of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Seen here is British Airways 787-8 Registration No. G-ZBJA (Photo by DELEHELLE Eric)

Side-by-side view of the Boeing 787-9 (top) and Airbus A350-900 (below)

Side-by-side view of an Air France Boeing 787 (top) and a British Airways Airbus A350 (below)

The Boeing 787 cockpit features a 4-piece windshield, while the similar shaped Airbus A350 uses a 6-piece windshield. Shown below is the windshield arrangement of the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350. Also shown is the windshield of the Airbus A220.

 

The different configurations of the cockpit windshield, seen from a front view, on the Airbus A350 with its 6-piece windshield, and Boeing 787 with its 4-piece windshield. Also shown is the windshield configuration of the Airbus A220.

Boeing 787-8 Photographs

Boeing 787-8 Registration JA828A of ANA (Photo by Arthur CHI YEN)

Boeing 787-8 Registration B-2737 of China Southern Airlines (Photo by Bernard Spragg)

Boeing 787-8 Registration G-ZBKD of British Airways (Photo by Arthur CHI YEN)

Boeing 787-8 Registration FY-KZA of Kenya Airways (Photo by Tomi Fulesi)

Boeing 787-9 Photographs

Boeing 787-9 Registration A40-SF of Oman AIr (Photo by Arthur CHI YEN)

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Boeing 787-9 "Sunflower", Registration No. PH-BHC (Photo by DELEHELLE Eric)

Boeing 787-9 of Japan Airlines, registration JA864J, awaiting takeoff at the DFW Airport (Staff Phohto, June, 2019)

Boeing 787-9 Registration G-CKMU of Norwegian Air (Photo by Arthur CHI YEN)

Boeing 787-9 Registration N438AM of AeroMexico (Photo by Tomi Fulesi)

Boeing 787-10 Photographs Courtesy of the Boeing Co.

The largest member of the 787 family is the 787-10. Early airlines flying the 787-10 include Singapore, Ethiad, United, KLM, British Air, Air Canada, ANA and others.

Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner rollout in Charleston, SC on February 17, 2017 (Photo courtesy of Boeing)

Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner in flight (Photo courtesy of Boeing)

The first Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner delivered, to Singapore Airlines, March 25, 2018

Saudia Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner (Photo courtesy of Boeing)

YouTube Video of Boeing 787 Takeoffs and Landings (Courtesy of PilotSanderHD)

 

For More Information on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner

Visit the official website of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.