THE maiden flight of a plane which will play a crucial role in the future of Rolls-Royce has been postponed for "several weeks".

The delay will last while work is carried out to reinforce a section of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a plane in which the Derby firm has a 41% stake.

Rolls-Royce's Trent 1000 engine – designed, developed and first tested in Derby – will power the plane.

It is an integral part of the Sinfin firm's future, with the craft being described by aviation experts as the most important new plane in the world.

Engineers have already tested Trent 1000 engines on the wings of the 787.

The need for the adjustments was identified during recent testing at Boeing's plant near Seattle, in America. It was due to be given an inaugural run this month.

Trent 1000 is the lead engine for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the only engine used on the Airbus XWB – extra wide body.

These aircraft will be in service for 25 to 40 years and the technology will be serviced and improved throughout, guaranteeing work for Rolls-Royce's civil aerospace division.

The Dreamliner was first unveiled at a roll-out ceremony at Boeing's site in July 2007.

Scott Carson, president and CEO of Boeing, said a team of experts was already working on solving the reinforcement problems.

He said: "Consideration was given to a temporary solution that would allow us to fly as scheduled, but we ultimately concluded that the right thing was to develop, design, test and incorporate a permanent modification.

"Structural modifications like these are not uncommon in the development of new airplanes, and this is not an issue related to our choice of materials or the assembly and installation work of our team."