Aircraft company Boeing confirmed Wednesday the launch of its new 787 jet will be delayed well into 2009.

The company said the first flight of the new airplane, dubbed the Dreamliner, will be pushed back to the fourth quarter of this year rather than the end of the second quarter. First delivery to customers is now planned for the third quarter of 2009 instead of the first quarter.

Visitors crowd around the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner during a ceremony at Boeing's assembly plant in Everett, Wash., in July 2007.
(Ted S. Warren/Associated Press)

The announcement marked the latest in a series of delays for the new jet. In October 2007, it was delayed six months. Then a further three-month delay was announced in January of this year.

The 787 was originally due to fly around September 2007.

Boeing said the aircraft's first flight is being rescheduled "due to slower than expected completion of work that travelled from supplier facilities into Boeing's final assembly line, unanticipated rework, and the addition of margin into the testing schedule."

"We deeply regret the disruption and disappointment these changes will cause for our customers, and we will work closely with each of them to minimize the impact," said Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and chief executive officer Scott Carson in a release issued prior to the opening of stock market trading.

Shares of Boeing rose $3.58, or almost 5 per cent, to end at $78.60 US on the NYSE.