No answers in Dreamliner investigation
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is expected to remain grounded for several more weeks, after an update from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) revealed that investigators are still unsure of the causes behind the aircraft’s recent problems.
In a briefing on Thursday, the NTSB chairman Deborah Hersman said the investigation was focusing on the Dreamliner’s lithium-ion battery, but admitted it still hadn’t found out what was causing them to overheat and catch fire.
Referring to incident at Boston’s Logan International Airport, when the battery of Japan Airlines Dreamliner caught fire shortly after arriving from Tokyo, Ms Hersman explained the sequence of events. “The lithium-ion battery experienced a thermal runaway,” she said. “We know there were short circuits. We know there was a fire.” She added however, that the NTSB was still working to find out why these events occurred.
Boeing said it welcomed “the progress being made in the 787 investigation”. In terms of its own probes, Boeing said it had “hundreds of engineering and technical experts who are working around the clock” to fix the problem”. It added however, that it is “not permitted to comment directly on the ongoing investigations”.
Meanwhile in Tokyo, the Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB) also delivered a briefing into its investigation. JTSB chairman Norihiro Goto confirmed that there “no overcharging” occurred in the battery.
The batteries manufactured by Kyoto-based GS Yuasa Corp have been at the centre of the investigation, and the NTSB revealed that these batteries are unique to the B787.
But with hundreds of flights having already been cancelled due to the grounding of the world’s Dreamliner fleet, Boeing and its customers will be hoping that the investigations provide some answers sooner rather than later.