Boeing hopes 787 airborne within weeks

Boeing Co said yesterday its 787 Dreamliner jets could be airborne within weeks using a new battery system that includes safeguards against overheating, a prediction that drew scepticism from some regulators and industry experts.

We are not yet in a position to say when flights will restart

Japanese regulators immediately warned that the timetable was impossible to predict, in part because investigators still do not know what had caused lithium-ion batteries to overheat on two 787s.

“At this time we are not yet in a position to say when flights will restart,” said Shigeru Takano, the air transport safety director at Japan’s Civil Aviation Board (CAB), which will assess and approve Boeing’s proposed fix.

Boeing’s confident assertion marked a shift from the May or June dates expected by airlines, and appeared to pressure regulators to quickly approve the new battery safeguards. Industry sources said US regulators have signalled they expect a lengthy testing schedule sufficient to ensure the refitted, carbon-composite plane is safe.

Boeing’s timetable also put the company at risk of missing a deadline if approval takes longer than expected, adding to a history of missed deadlines that has bedevilled the Dreamliner.

Regulators grounded Dreamliners worldwide in January after a battery caught fire on a Japan Airlines Co 787 jet at Boston’s Logan airport and a battery melted on an All Nippon Airways Co flight in Japan.”