Boeing is "confident" that its contingency plans will ensure the 787 is delivered on time to ANA next May even if the aircraft's first flight is pushed back to October. "We're targeting first flight by the end of September, but [Chairman, President and CEO] Jim McNerney also said that target date could move well into the fall as well as we proceed to work on the stuff in front of us," a 787 program spokesperson told ATWOnline.

Boeing's 2007 order book stood at a net 698 following orders for 777s from Air New Zealand and Cathay Pacific Airways added last week. Qatar Airways 787 order, all but confirmed by the airline last month (ATWOnline, July 25), still is listed as unidentified. As of July 31, Airbus trailed by just 10 net orders with 688.

Embraer 195 received type certification from US FAA, the manufacturer announced Friday. The 110-seat aircraft, Embraer's largest, received ANAC and EASA certification last year.

787 first flight's timing is the subject of speculation, with some media suggesting an October date rather than late September. However, Boeing Chairman Jim McNerney hinted at the delay late last month during the announcement of the company's second-quarter results. If the 787 does fly in mid October--say Oct. 15--it will be 99 days after rollout, the same time lapse for the A380 but way ahead of the first 747, which flew 132 days after its rollout date of Sept. 30, 1968.

BAE Systems Regional Aircraft will lease a third Avro RJ70 to India's MDLR Airlines, which launched operations in March. Delivery of the two-class, 70-seat aircraft is scheduled for the end of next month. MDLR flies to Delhi, Kolkata, Chandigarh and Ranchi and plans to start flying to Jaipur and Surat.