Boeing 787-9 Tempts Fate With Vertical Takeoff For Air Show

It's 787 Dreamliner planes may be hounded, maybe even cursed, by technical issues time and again, but that isn't stopping Boeing from dreaming it big. And by big, we mean aerial stunts that probably have no place in a commercial passenger jet. But that is exactly what the plane maker will be doing with the 787-9 Dreamliner, in cooperation with Vietnam Airlines. In a footage of a practice flight, the blue and white jet is show, among other things, making a vertical takeoff that would have passengers' stomachs churning.

Luckily, of course, there are no passengers and no other people on board other than pilots. In fact, you are unlikely to see it anywhere else. Not that aviation agencies and airlines would allow it. The stunts are being prepared for the Paris Air Show this week and is meant to showcase the extreme maneuverability of the jet.

And what could be a better proof of that than a vertical takeoff. The plane does start on the ground horizontal as it starts running towards the point of takeoff. However, once it lifts its nose up, it continues doing so until it's in an almost completely vertical orientation, much like a rocket, until a certain height, where it goes back to its normal horizontal position. It is harder than it sounds or looks, because a miscalculation would send the plane somersaulting backwards to its, and its crew's, doom.

Aside form this, the Boeing 787-9 does a few other turns and twists that will probably stop the heart of anyone watching, whether or not they know there is barely anyone on board.

These are, of course, meant to show off the plane's aerial skills, as well as the courage, skill, and probably insanity, of its pilots. There is probably very little use for these in real life, except perhaps in emergencies where pilots have to take extreme maneuvers to save people's lives. Presuming, of course, that the plane is still in perfect working condition in the first place. The 787 Dreamliner's record, however, might not inspire that much confidence.

VIA: SFGate