Boeing 787

If you want to know anything about the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, I recommend Wikipedia rather than the lame official Boeing site.
One thing that really did impress me about the 787 was the fact that it is 80% by volume composite(CFRP).
Apparently this permits the use of higher humidity and pressure in the passenger compartment as CFRP doesn't corrode; this means a vastly improved passenger experience over long distances, with less fatigue and physiological trauma.
Which means the Air Transport Engineering equivalent of a 'killer app'.
Somebody tell Airbus engineering isn't an academic game of one upmanship.
It's a business.

On the other hand, the London Times slide show (somewhere on this page) included the comment that the fuselage is a one-piece.
I sincerely hope not, or a baggage handling accident would scrap the entire plane.

Much as I enjoy flying in (most) Airbuses(except A310), I was also interested in the potential problems of the A380.
You see, it is certified for operation on the standard 45 metre wide runway, but the recommendation is that it uses a 60 metre.
Which many people think will lead to sufficiently altered perceptions of the 'flare-point' when landing other planes, that pilots will keep pulling out too early and stalling onto the runway from a height of several metres.
Obviously this is dangerous.

It will be interesting to see how things work out.