Boeing wraps up 787 test flight; battery fix awaits FAA approval

Pat Shanahan, Boeing senior vice president of airplane programs, speaks to workers Wednesday at the opening of the new delivery center in Everett, Wash. Boeing conducted a final test flight Friday for the 787 Dreamliner with its upgraded battery system.
Pat Shanahan, Boeing senior vice president of airplane programs, speaks to workers Wednesday at the opening of the new delivery center in Everett, Wash. Boeing conducted a final test flight Friday for the 787 Dreamliner with its upgraded battery system.

Boeing Co. conducted a final test flight Friday for the 787 Dreamliner after completing ground trials for an upgraded battery system as it seeks to return the grounded jet to commercial service.

“The purpose of the test is to demonstrate that the new system performs as intended during normal and non-normal flight conditions,” Marc Birtel, a Boeing spokesman, said in a statement.

That flight was the final test for the lithium-ion batteries before the new design is submitted for U.S. Federal Aviation Administration approval. The agency next will have to assess whether the proposed fix is sufficient to let 787s fly again after batteries overheated on a Japan Airlines Co. plane in Boston and during an All Nippon Airways Co. flight in Japan.

Boeing said the test plane - a LOT Polish Airlines SA Dreamliner that has made three unrelated check flights with the new system since March 25 - flew from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., and that FAA officials were aboard.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood declined to say Friday when he will decide whether to end the grounding, which began with an FAA directive on Jan. 16 and was followed within hours by regulators around the world.

“I know you wanted something more definitive,” LaHood said after speaking at a conference in Washington sponsored by the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. “So does Boeing.”

Boeing must convince regulators the Dreamliner and its battery upgrade are safe before flights can resume, LaHood said. The concept for the fix on which the FAA signed off in March “was a good plan,” and regulators are now waiting to see the results, he said.

“We want to get it right,” LaHood said. “We want to make sure that everything’s done correctly. We want to be able to assure the flying public that these planes are safe.”

Boeing’s ground tests included overheating the system to evaluate a stainless steel enclosure designed to eliminate the possibility of fire and a tube that would vent any liquid or vapors outside the plane. The design also increases the spacing and insulation for the power cells to prevent the spread of any overheating and includes new circuitry for the battery chargers.

“Preliminary results are consistent with our expectations,” Birtel said. “Detailed results will be analyzed in the days ahead and provided to the FAA.”

The batteries are made by GS Yuasa Corp., based in Kyoto, Japan. Boeing has sent engineers to Japan, home to the biggest 787 fleets, to get ready to install the upgraded units, according to Birtel. That work takes four to five days to complete on each plane.

If the FAA approves the changes and returns the 787 to commercial duty, Chicago based Boeing has said it will make the battery upgrades to aircraft in roughly the order that they were delivered to customers. All Nippon and Japan Airlines were the first two customers and operate 24 of the 49 jets in service.

While a cause for the Dreamliner battery malfunctions hasn’t been determined, Boeing said during a March 15 presentation that the changes to the design will ensure safe operations.

The 787’s g rounding forced airlines to shuffle schedules to plug gaps from the plane’s sudden absence. Boeing has halted deliveries until commercial service resumes and may face financial penalties from customers.

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a two-day investigative hearing beginning April 23 to discuss the batteries’ design, testing and original certification.

Business, Pages 27 on 04/06/2013

Upcoming Events