EVERETT, Wash., (WIBW)_ Boeing's 787 Dreamliner is set to take its maiden flight next Tuesday. But, like a planned shuttle launch, that date is not a certainty. Since its debut more than two years ago, the Dreamliner has already had at least a half-dozen initial flights scrubbed for various reasons.

The company is pinning a lot of its hopes for the future on the scheduled five and a half hour flight. Not only is the 787 an important plane for Boeing in its own right, the company says it intends to base the replacements for the 727 and 777 on the new plane's design and production.