Boeing Dreamliner with UAE-made parts delivered to Etihad Airways

Boeing delivered the first 787 Dreamliner completed with parts fabricated by United Arab Emirates-based Strata Manufacturing PJSC to Etihad Airways last week, and Emirati business leaders think that’s good news for the region’s industry.

Strata Manufacturing, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Co., is delivering vertical fin ribs made of advanced composite components for Boeing’s 777 and 787 airliners, and the first planes with those parts are headed straight for the UAE.

“The composite vertical fin ribs that are ‘made in the UAE, for the UAE’ are another major accomplishment for Abu Dhabi’s aerospace industry, which is now playing an integral part in the global aerospace value chain,” Strata CEO Badr Al Olama said. “This is a major milestone that demonstrates Boeing’s trust in Strata.”

Boeing and Mubadala announced strategic alignment initiatives and agreements intended to further initiatives in areas of strategic alignment, including composites manufacturing. Strata was chosen to become a major Boeing supplier in 2011, and is now producing empennage ribs for the 777 and vertical fin ribs for the 787 Dreamliner.

Strata began delivering the first components to Boeing last year and Mubadala is looking at the possibility of supplying $2.5 billion-worth of advanced composites and machined metals to Boeing commercial programs in the future.