Strata Manufacturing has delivered its first shipset of empennage ribs for the Boeing 777X, the Mubadala Investment Company subsidiary announced at the Dubai Airshow.

The delivery follows a landmark agreement marking the fourth work package Boeing has awarded to Strata, after signed during the Abu Dhabi Global Aerospace Summit in April 2018. “As we embark on our second decade of operations, this milestone delivery is a new chapter in our ongoing success story with a long-trusted partner such as Boeing,” said Strata CEO Ismail Ali Abdulla. “With our recent adoption of digital and Industry 4.0 technologies, Strata’s provision of world-class composite aerostructure components to industry-leading aircraft OEMs is championing the UAE’s global aerospace ambitions.”

Boeing now expects to start flight testing the 777X in the first quarter of next year and targets certification in early 2021.

With Strata’s expanding role as a direct composite aero structures supplier to Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the Al Ain-based manufacturer now manufactures empennage ribs for the 777 and vertical fin ribs for the 787 Dreamliner, as well as the composite empennage ribs for the 777X. Strata also launched “Strata plus,” an expansion of its existing facilities, to support the supply of Boeing 787 vertical fin assemblies.

Based at Nibras Al Ain Aerospace Park, Strata works with Airbus, Boeing, Leonardo, and Pilatus to support the development of a planned aerospace hub in Abu Dhabi, a cornerstone of the emirate’s strategic economic diversification initiatives.