London Gatwick airport: Major airline marks 10 years of flying Dreamliner aircrafts

TUI celebrated the occasion by surprising passengers on a 787 Dreamliner flight to Rhodes today at London Gatwick airport with cupcakes and balloons and gave each passenger a luggage tag and premium Rituals pack.

The addition of this fuel-efficient, long-haul aircraft made TUI Airways the first airline in the UK to use the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The fleet now includes 19 aircraft across TUI Airlines’, with 13 used specifically for UK customers flying to popular long-haul destinations like Florida, Mexico, the Caribbean and Thailand to name a few.

The TUI Airways fleet is a mix of 787-8 and 787-9s, with the first 787-8 Dreamliner delivery arriving on 31st May 2013 from Seattle to Manchester. Collectively, they have accumulated 401,377 flight hours, meaning it has returned over 7,500,000 million TUI passengers from package holidays. The aircraft on average travels at a speed of 600-650 miles per hour and has covered roughly 241 million miles, which is more than 9600 miles around the planet.

And that’s not all, Dreamliners use up to 20% less fuel than other long-haul aircraft which reduces both carbon monoxide and nitrous oxide emissions with its cutting-edge manufacturing technologies that use carbon fibre.

Marco Ciomperlik, Chief Airline Officer of TUI Group, stated: TUI Airline’s Vision and Mission is to create happy holidays with every flight and as sustainability is an integral part of that, we’re incredibly proud to be championing more sustainable travel, providing more eco and fuel-efficient aircraft for our customers.”

Dawn Wilson, Chief Operating Officer of TUI Airline, said: “We’re thrilled to be celebrating the 10th anniversary of our first 787 Dreamliner passenger flight this year. The addition of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft to the TUI Airways fleet allowed us to expand our long-haul flying programme to many of our customers favourite holiday hotspots around the world.”

Malcolm Sutherland, Managing Director of TUI Airways, spoke of his own experience as a TUI pilot: “The 787 is an amazing aircraft and truly deserves the Dreamliner name. It’s sustainability credentials are second to none with around 20% lower fuel usage and emissions, and 60% reduction in noise footprint, compared with aircraft it has replaced. This low noise translates into the highest levels of passenger comfort in the cabin. It’s also fast, cruising at around 85% of the speed of sound. It’s unrivalled performance allows us to connect regional airports to the world, our customers travelling in comfort, with less time airborne and in the most sustainable way possible.”

In 2019, after the addition of the 787 Dreamliner’s, TUI Airways was awarded the most eco-efficient leisure airline in the world. What’s more, on the 1st June 2023 TUI Airways introduced new inflight content with HBO access movies to expand its in-flight entertainment.

Jonathan Pollard, Chief Commercial Officer, London Gatwick said: “TUI’s 787 Dreamliner has been a fantastic addition to London Gatwick’s airfield over the past 10 years, expanding TUI’s outstanding offer to a range of popular long-haul destinations. We are delighted to continue our excellent relationship with TUI and its passengers at London Gatwick, and look forward to the next 10 years.”

What makes the Dreamliner special?

Bigger Windows: The windows on a 787 Dreamliner are about 30% bigger than those on the average plane.Room Overhead: Even at its lowest point, the Dreamliner cabin is over 6-foot high, providing a real sense of space.

More Oxygen: It's well-known that people leave the plane feeling fresher. This is because its cabin pressure allows more oxygen to be absorbed into your blood.Mood Lighting: It supports the body clock, as the plane features a high-spec mood lighting system that can mimic things like dawn and dusk.

A Quieter Flight: The Dreamliner will generate 60 per cent less noise than standard planes during take-off and landing and it’s quieter in the air too.

Technical information

Composite material: While standard planes are metal, the Dreamliner is made of something called composite – a combination of different materials. It means it’s stronger, lighter and more aerodynamic.

Ultra fast: The plane flies at Mach 0.85. That’s the equivalent of 640 miles per hour – about three times faster than a Formula 1 car at full throttle.

Powerful engines: When it comes to powerful engines, the Dreamliner’s take some beating. Each one has enough power to supply energy to two million iPods at the same time.

More fuel-efficient: Thanks to its composite structure and revolutionary engines, the plane is more fuel-efficient and emits less CO2 – about 20 per cent less carbon on a flight from Britain to America.A bigger reach: The 787 Dreamliner can fly about 8,000 miles without stopping, which means it can go direct to destinations other planes can’t reach.

You can find out more about Tui’s long haul onboard service at https://www.tui.co.uk/holidays/long-haul