Plastic planes ’set to rule sky’

"[Boeing's] new 787 Dreamliner - which is expected to make its first flight next year - is already being constructed using carbon fibre-reinforced plastic composites. ... the materials would be used when the company decided to update its popular 737 planes. Mr Mulally said composites would be used to build up to half of each aircraft and would cut building and maintenance costs." - bbc

"One of the key assets of the Boeing 787 is its fuselage, built out of carbon-fibre reinforced plastic, which makes it about 20% more fuel efficient than rivals in the same category." - marketwatch