=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2003/10/16/f= inancial1335EDT0172.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, October 16, 2003 (AP) New Boeing 777 model crosses Pacific on one engine in test (10-16) 10:35 PDT SEATTLE (AP) -- The latest model of the Boeing 777 has flown for 51/2 hours over the Pacific Ocean on one engine, a record for single-engine certification testing, the company has announced. One engine on the 777-300ER -- for extended range -- was shut down for that period during a 13-hour flight that began Tuesday in Seattle and ended Wednesday in Taiwan, Boeing spokesman Ed McGinn said. The plane performed flawlessly throughout the flight, test pilot Frank Santoni said. The previous record for a one-engine certification test flight was three hours, McGinn said. The 777-300ER has GE90-115B engines, the most powerful ever used on a commercial jet, and is Boeing's longest commercial aircraft at 242 feet. It can carry about 365 passengers and has a maximum range of 8,250 miles, about 1,450 miles farther than the basic 777-300. Regulations governing trans-ocean flights restrict twin-engine aircraft operations to within 3 hours of a suitable emergency landing strip. Some airlines have been granted exceptions to extend the limit to 3 hours, 27 minutes. As aviation authorities consider an industry proposal to extend the limi= t, Boeing decided to test the new plane for a longer flight now to prove its capacity in advance. Boeing is in the ninth month of certification testing on the first two 777-300ERs and expects to get approval from U.S. and European regulators early next year. The first delivery is scheduled in April to Air France, which is leasing the plane from International Lease Finance Corp. In afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Boeing shares were = up 44 cents at $37.44. =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2003 AP