American Airlines Finally Gets the Keys to Its Very First Dreamliner

American Airlines has officially accepted delivery of its brand-new Dreamliner. The Boeing 787-8 with tail number N800AN is the first of the airline’s firm order for 42 of the hyper-efficient passenger planes.

After months of delays, American Airlines took delivery of its first 787-8 Dreamliner at Boeing’s Everett, Wash. factory on Thursday. The brand-new Dream Machine arrived at the airline’s Dallas/Fort Worth hub on Friday, but it isn’t expected to enter regular service until April, when the airline plans to fly the new plane between its domestic hubs for several months before repositioning to international service.

In a press release, American CEO Doug Parker said the new Dreamliner is just the first step:

We are committed to delivering a fantastic product for our customers with the continuation of our unprecedented fleet renewal program and more than $2 billion in improvements in the customer experience. The 787 makes our fleet younger and more modern and it will open up new possibilities to connect our customers to the places they want to fly.

Already laying claim to the youngest fleet of the U.S. global network carriers — with an average aircraft age of 12.3 years — American intends to get even younger. The airline has a firm order for 42 new 787-8 and 787-9 Dreamliners with an option to order an additional 58.

American says it plans to take delivery of an average of two new aircraft per week in 2015. As the airline adds a staggering number of new planes, it is continuing to refurbish its entire fleet of Boeing 777-200s as well as retrofitting select 767-300s, 757-200s and Airbus A319s planes.

[Photos: American Airlines]