SEATTLE - The first flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner has been delayed again, due to the length of the machinists' strike, company officials said Tuesday.

The Dreamliner's debut flight originally was scheduled for earlier this year, but it was delayed until the fourth quarter of 2008 primarily because of suppliers who were behind schedule on production.

Now Boeing officials say the first flight won't happen any time this year. A new timeframe for the first flight will be worked out later, they said.

"Given the duration of the IAM work stoppage, first flight of the 787 Dreamliner will not be accomplished in the fourth quarter of 2008," Yvonne Leach, spokeswoman for the Boeing 787 program, said in a statement.

"The timeframe for first flight has not been established and will be based on the strike recovery assessment," she added. "The program is working to determine a new program schedule that will be announced when it is finalized."

The announcement comes a day after analysts said the eight-week machinists' strike may have delayed the delivery of as many as 80 planes.

The walkout ended Saturday after union workers ratified a deal with the company.

The Machinists union, representing about 27,000 workers in Washington state, Oregon and Kansas, voted three-to-one to end the strike that began Sept. 6.

The walkout by electricians, painters, mechanics and other production workers paralyzed Boeing's commercial plane business, which had been operating at full capacity with a record backlog of orders.

The company, based in Chicago, routinely delivers about 40 planes per month, so the delivery of roughly 80 planes will have been postponed by the work stoppage, said Scott Hamilton, an analyst with Leeham Cos. "And then there's the ripple effect that will be going on down the line," he added.

Planes manufactured by Boeing, the world's No. 2 commercial airplane maker after Europe's Airbus, include 737s, 747s, 767s and 777s.

Boeing and its suppliers already had fallen behind on production before the strike began, particularly for its 787 jetliner, said John Walsh, president of the consulting firm Walsh Aviation. Boeing has said the 787 promises greater fuel efficiency because of its construction from lightweight carbon-fiber composite parts.

"They may have benefited from a little bit of catching up, which would be hard to quantify," he said, referring to Boeing's suppliers, some of which slashed production because of the strike.

And the delay may not be entirely unwelcome by customers, he said, considering the global economic slowdown that could curb demand. "I haven't heard anybody complaining bitterly about not having aircraft."

Craig Fraser, an analyst with the ratings agency Fitch Ratings, said the strike outcome meant "they can get back to work on this very large backlog they have, and importantly on the 787."

"There are just too many labor stoppages and it's affecting their reputation in the market, and it's something we will be watching going forward in terms of their credit rating," he said.