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| F.A.A. to Allow a 787 Flight, With Crew Only | F.A.A. to Allow a 787 Flight, With Crew Only |
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| Federal regulators said Wednesday that they had approved one flight of a Boeing 787, with a flight crew but no passengers, as the company’s engineers study possible changes to the plane’s electrical systems that could reduce the risks of another battery fire. | Federal regulators said Wednesday that they had approved one flight of a Boeing 787, with a flight crew but no passengers, as the company’s engineers study possible changes to the plane’s electrical systems that could reduce the risks of another battery fire. |
| The flight would be the first for a 787 since aviation authorities grounded the innovative aircraft last month after two incidents with its lithium-ion batteries. The Federal Aviation Administration said it would let Boeing return one 787 from a painting plant in Fort Worth to its plant near Seattle. It has not yet approved flights to conduct tests on the batteries. | The flight would be the first for a 787 since aviation authorities grounded the innovative aircraft last month after two incidents with its lithium-ion batteries. The Federal Aviation Administration said it would let Boeing return one 787 from a painting plant in Fort Worth to its plant near Seattle. It has not yet approved flights to conduct tests on the batteries. |
| The flight, scheduled for Thursday, will come as the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to raise questions about how the F.A.A. certified the 787’s battery before it began flying passengers in 2011. The safety board, which has been performing tests of its own as part of its investigation into the battery problems, is seeking to find out why weaknesses with the batteries were not picked up in Boeing’s original testing program. | The flight, scheduled for Thursday, will come as the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to raise questions about how the F.A.A. certified the 787’s battery before it began flying passengers in 2011. The safety board, which has been performing tests of its own as part of its investigation into the battery problems, is seeking to find out why weaknesses with the batteries were not picked up in Boeing’s original testing program. |
| The safety board is looking at whether the F.A.A. fully understood any potential issues with the volatile new batteries before it approved their use under special conditions. | The safety board is looking at whether the F.A.A. fully understood any potential issues with the volatile new batteries before it approved their use under special conditions. |
| Deborah Hersman, the safety board’s chairman, told reporters on Wednesday that it would probably take investigators several more weeks before they could determine what happened with the Boeing batteries. | Deborah Hersman, the safety board’s chairman, told reporters on Wednesday that it would probably take investigators several more weeks before they could determine what happened with the Boeing batteries. |
| Boeing engineers, meanwhile, are working on a range of technical fixes. These include making the battery cells more resistant to shocks to keep excess heat from spreading from one cell to another, causing the kind of thermal runaway that occurred in the two recent events. Boeing officials have said recently they are also working on building more solid containment cases and better venting mechanisms in case the batteries were to overheat again. | |
| None of this has been tested or approved yet, a process that could take months. And until more is known about the cause of the recent incidents, the grounding order is unlikely to be lifted soon. | None of this has been tested or approved yet, a process that could take months. And until more is known about the cause of the recent incidents, the grounding order is unlikely to be lifted soon. |
| The 787 is the first commercial airplane to use large lithium-ion batteries for major flight functions. All 50 of Boeing’s 787s that were delivered to airlines have been grounded since Jan. 16. | The 787 is the first commercial airplane to use large lithium-ion batteries for major flight functions. All 50 of Boeing’s 787s that were delivered to airlines have been grounded since Jan. 16. |
| “I would not want to categorically say that these batteries are not safe,” Ms. Hersman said during a briefing with reporters on Wednesday. “Any new technology, any new design, there are going to be some inherent risks. The important thing is to mitigate them.” | “I would not want to categorically say that these batteries are not safe,” Ms. Hersman said during a briefing with reporters on Wednesday. “Any new technology, any new design, there are going to be some inherent risks. The important thing is to mitigate them.” |