On February 8, 2010, the first 747-8 Freighter took its inaugural flight. For the next year and half, RC501, along with four other test planes, would fly thousands of hours, and around the world, to complete the rigorous requirements of certification flight testing. But the hard work, the long hours and the numerous challenges of flight test came to end on August 2, 2011, when RC523 landed at Paine Field in Everett, Wash., finishing the last function and reliability test.